Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil
by Nopride4531
Summary: Henry Sturgess never thought he would feel for anyone again, save for his few close friends. But when a 14 year old girl suddenly crashes quite literally into his life, he discovers what it's like to actually let someone in. Naturally, of course, the vampire empire takes an interest in her. What will Henry do to protect her? One more little twist: She's from 2012. No slash.
1. Introduction

**Okay, so this is my first attempt at a fic for this movie. I haven't read the book so please don't be too critical about how closely I follow it. However, you can be as critical as you want when it comes to my writing. I'm always looking for ways to improve it :)**

**This takes place later on in the movie, after Lincoln has been elected President. Note that there will be some major plot changes as this fic progresses and an important OC will be the narrator. **

**Try to bear with me when it comes to explaining some of the more modern items and how they got to the 1800s. I really wanted to include them and I had to think of SOME way to do it. It may seem stupid, but once you get past their introduction, it gets a lot better. **

**Slash? Well since my main character is only 14 years old... No. But there is a good deal of friendly fluff :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter. All credit belongs to the author. Also, none of the songs I've used belong to me. I just like incorporating them into my stories. **

**Hope you like!**

* * *

Henry Sturgess was living a pretty incredible life, or as much incredible a life as a man turned vampire turned vampire hunter trainer could live. Things had been quiet in the North for a while. Lincoln had been elected president and given up his hobby of vampire killing, while Henry watched the said supernatural being's movements in the south. It wasn't looking so good; because the North was pushing to abolish slavery and therefor eliminate the main source of food for Adam and his associates, they were starting to retaliate. More and more attacks were lining the Cotton Belt and were beginning to make their way through Union territory. To top it all off, most of the Confederate soldiers had been turned into vampires and were completely invincible to modern bullets.

Joy oh joy.

As Henry sat in his living room, absently staring out the window, he realized that it seemed as though nothing could surprise him anymore. Had he not seen everything there was to see? Death, sorrow, happiness, anger, vampirism, what else was there? It was all blurred into one continuous feeling of... Blah.

So no, nothing could surprise him.

Well, almost nothing.

That "almost" came in the form of the girl that had just appeared in his front yard and then collapsed to the ground. Henry shot up from his chair and dashed outside, kneeling down next to her crumpled form as she let out a small groan of pain. He tilted his head in slight confusion as he took in her clothes. She was not dressed as a lady but a man, sporting pants, a collared white shirt with a skull on it, and jet black boots. Lying next to her was a small green jacket that buttoned up the front and also included a skull embroidered over the right breast pocket.

A loud thud directed Henry's attention to his yard once again, where something had manifested out of thin air and dropped to the ground. Another fell at an alarming rate of speed and without thinking, Henry picked up the girl and ran into the house, where they would hopefully be shielded from the storm of large and most likely heavy objects. He lay her down on the floor and she groaned again, unconsciously reaching for her side. Henry removed her hand from the area and narrowed his eyes when he saw what was there.

A large gash made itself prominent as it continued to spill blood on to the floor, leaving him fighting his vampire instincts. He clenched his teeth and left the room to get his medical kit that was somewhere in the kitchen. He retrieved it and quickly returned back to the girl, grabbing a bottle of vodka on the way. He poured the alcohol over the wound, causing her to wince in pain. He patched it up as best he could before carrying her to the spare room he had on the second floor.

The rest of the afternoon was spent hauling in the odd stuff that had made a home in his yard.

* * *

It's not every day that you wake up in a schmancy room and a fluffy white bed with sheets that feel as if they were made of silk and a mattress that's like a cloud. I shut my eyes for a few more minutes, allowing myself to enjoy this luxurious setting and breathe in cool, fresh air.

And then my serene world shattered as I realized that I not only wasn't in my room, but I also felt like death.

I winced and lifted my shirt a little to look at my side, where the pain was most prominent. I felt my eyes widen as I took in the sight. Why the hell was there a bandage covering most of my skin? I gingerly pressed two fingers to it and withdrew them with a hiss of pain.

"Damn that freaking hurt!" I exclaimed as I swung my feet over the edge of the bed and stumbled over to the large mirror that was in the corner of the room.

Not only did I feel like death, I looked like it too. My hair was a mess, sticking up all over my head and looking way more punk than i'd intended when I'd cut it pixie style. Dark shadows had stuck themselves under my eyes, dulling the malachite and giving off a tired glow. My face was pale and when I brought my hand to my forehead, I felt that it was also on fire.

"She's a natural disaster, she's the last of the American girls," I sang and suddenly felt the odd urge to laugh.

I ripped my fingers through my snarled mess of hair in an attempt to control it and partially succeeded. It no longer stuck up, but it didn't look any less like a fishing net than it had two minutes ago. I waved a hand at the mirror and turned to face the room, where daylight poured in through the large windows. What I saw looked like something out of the nineteenth century. Portraits were nailed into the wall and they all looked as if they were made recently instead of over a century old, as most historians would age them.

Frowning, I slowly walked to the door and opened it to reveal a long hallway. I followed it, noting that there were more old looking paintings and no light switches or phones that I could use, until I came to a staircase. I took the first step, grasping the railing and my side at the same time. Walking really, really hurt and naturally, climbing down stairs would as well.

"Okay, okay, you can do this," I softly chanted to myself. "One at a time. Ah mother f-urg!"

When I finally reached the bottom of that stupid thing, I leaned against the wall and shut my eyes. After a few minutes, I began to take in my surroundings. A nice sitting room was directly in front of me through an archway in the wall. A piano was stood upright near a window and on the other side of the room was an ancient looking desk. I half hobbled through the archway and immediately saw my guitar propped up against the wall. Next to it was my battery powered amp with the pack of double A batteries I always keep with it.

Okay.

What. The. Hell.

I picked the Les Paul up and strummed it with my fingers, almost forgetting the pain in my side. And then:

"What are you doing?"

I shrieked and dropped the guitar to the floor with a loud bang. I spun around and saw a man who looked to be in his mid to late twenties standing there. His midnight hair stood up all over his head and it would've looked childish if it weren't for his piercing earth eyes. He wore a long black overcoat and a white collared shirt with suspenders. He looked like one of the civil war reenactors I'd seen on my eighth grade East Coast trip.

That and he was totally hot.

But I'd woken up with a side wound in what seems to be his house when I should be in San Francisco, battling another boring day at school. Instead, I was with a strange man who was dressed like Sherlock Holmes.

I backed up until I hit the wall and he took a few steps closer, eyes still holding mine and containing that same piercing look.

"What are you doing?" He repeated, softer this time and with a distinct old English accent. It took me a few moments to realize that he actually wanted me to answer.

Well tough buddy. I got questions of my own.

"Who are you?" I demanded. "Where am I? Why is my side like this? Why is everything so old fashioned?"

"One at a time, miss, one at a time," he said as he took another step. "You're in Virginia, Washington DC to be exact. I don't know what you mean by 'old fashioned' and I cannot tell you what happened to your side. I was hoping that you could, actually."

"Virginia?" I exclaimed as I unpeeled myself from the wall. "What? Who are you?"

"Sturgess. Henry Sturgess. That's all you need to know."

"Okaaaaayyy... Ummmm... You're not going to hurt me, are you?"

I know it was a stupid question, but I had to get it out because it was the one I was most worried about. Henry's brow furrowed in what I assumed to be confusion and he tilted his head.

"No, I'm not. Why would I?"

Because your a man and I don't trust men. Because you're kind of a weirdo and dressed funny. Because I woke up in your house with what feels like a freaking stab wound. All of those reasons would've been perfectly understandable. But instead, me being the socially awkward person I am, I said,

"Because you're hot and the hot ones are always the bad guys."

Smooth. Real smooth.

But thankfully, he only stared at me like I was crazy and then dropped the subject. He approached me with deliberate slowness (probably in case I decided to freak out again) and gently grasped my arm. I was too shocked to shake him off and I let him guide me over to a soft, red chair. I sat down and he took the one across from me, leaning back and resting his head on his hand.

"What's your name?" He asked and I nearly jumped again because the piercing look was back in his eyes.

"Olivia," I managed to say without stuttering. "Olivia Armstrong."

A brief smile flashed across his face before it once again became serious and business-like.

"Where are you from, miss Olivia Armstrong?"

"San Francisco."

"How old are you?"

"Fourteen."

"Okay, can you tell me what happened before you suddenly appeared in my front yard, bloody and unconscious?"

I frowned and thought back as far as I could.

"I was walking home from school," I said and Henry leaned forward.

"Go on," he said.

"I had my guitar with me because me and my friends are in a band and we practice in the empty classrooms sometimes. I left early because my mom called me and said I had to get ready for the movie. I was on the sidewalk when there was this bright flash and searing pain. When I woke up, I was in that room upstairs."

Henry nodded and folded his hands, looking perplexed as he stood. I stood as well, not wanting to be caught off guard in case he did decide to attack me.

"Just one more question," he said. "What's a movie?"

My breath caught in my throat and my vision darkened around the edges. Everything suddenly made sense. The old fashioned paintings, clothes, talking... It was all so clear.

"What year is it?" I asked, my voice sounding far away to me.

"1863," Henry said. "Why?"

I didn't answer him and suddenly saw the ground rushing toward me.  
Then everything went dark once again.

* * *

**Right, so this is just the introduction. We'll get into why Olivia's here and what it means for our characters :) Sorry if Henry's OOC. Like I said, I haven't read the books and I've only seen the movie once. I hope you liked this and please review! **

**-Nopride**


	2. Stupid or Brave?

**Welcome back! In this chapter, we get to see Henry and Olivia's relationship start to develop. Also, there's an appearance by ol' Honest Abe! Hahaha I'm such a dork lol. Hope you like this!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own this book/ movie or any of the songs I decide to use. Oh and I also borrowed a line from Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows. Don't own that either.**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_My breath caught in my throat and my vision darkened around the edges. Everything suddenly made sense. The old fashioned clothing, paintings, talking... It was all so clear. _

_"What year is it?" I asked, my voice sounding far away to my ears. _

_"1863," Henry said. "Why?"_

_I didn't answer him and suddenly saw the ground rushing toward me._

_Then everything went dark once again._

* * *

Now

I opened my eyes because of a strong, sharp smell that seemed to be right under my nose. I coughed a little and felt my body being lifted into a sitting position. Henry was looking at me with an irritated, yet at the same time concerned look on his face. He held a glass of bourbon, judging by the bottle next to him, in his hands and I quickly realized that it must've been what revived me.

Balls. Can't I go five minutes without collapsing or fainting?

And then it all came rushing back.

1863. Somehow I'd been teleported one hundred forty nine years into the past. Great. Absolutely frigging awesome. Not only am I totally a fish out of water here, I don't know jack about anything from 1860-1870 because stupid state testing stopped my history class from doing it's Civil War unit.

Man, sometimes I really hate school.

"Miss Armstrong, can you hear me?"

Right, I'm not the only one in the room. Henry must've called my name at least three times before I finally realized he was actually saying something.

"Sorry, what?" I asked, shielding my eyes from the light that was streaming in through the window.

"I was asking you if you're alright. You just collapsed for no apparent reason."

"No, I'm not okay actually," I said as I got to my knees and then my feet. Henry did the same, his arms still half raised in an alert position. "I just traveled back in time one hundred fourty nine years and you're asking me if I'm okay!"

"I beg your pardon?" Henry said, looking shocked, or as shocked as he could look.

"Dude! Look at me! Do I seem like a normal 1800s girl?"

"I'll admit that you are rather odd, but time travel is absolutely outrageous!"

"Outrageous? Look at my guitar over there. Is it an 1800s guitar? No. Look at my amp. Do you even know what that is?"

I grabbed the instrument and pushed Henry slightly to the side before walking toward the front door. Before I even got two steps away, Henry grabbed my arms and effectively stopped me.

"You are not leaving," He said with a steely edge in his voice.

"The hell I'm not!" I exclaimed and fought to get free. "Let me go! Help! Someone get this psycho off me! Help!"

"Miss Armstrong I'm trying to..."

"I don't care what you're doing! Get away from me! I want to go home! I want to go home!"

"FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, WILL YOU JUST SHUT UP?"

Tears welled up in my eyes as I finally succeeded in getting my arms free. Instead of leaving through the front door, I ran up the stairs and back to the room I woke up in. I flopped down on the bed and buried my face in one of the pillows. My sobs shook my body, hurting my wound as well as my pride. I've got nowhere to go and I probably just royally pissed off the one person that could've helped me.

"God, if you're out there, get me outta here," I cried, voice muffled by the pillow. "I wanna go home! I wanna go h-h-home!"

* * *

Henry could hear her crying from where he sat in the living room. Nearly three hours had passed since she'd run upstairs and she still hadn't stopped sobbing. Should he have snapped at her? Probably not; she was just a young girl who was frightened by her arrival in a strange place after her supposed 'time travel'. Had she been getting on his nerves though? Definitely.

But he had to admit that he could find no other explanation for her just suddenly appearing in his front yard. Sure, time travel was far fetched and impossible, but then again, isn't vampirism to most people? Why should he discount one 'impossible' thing only to accept and believe another?

A knock at the door startled Henry out of his thoughts as he got up to answer it. Abe strolled into the room as soon as he did, wearing his usual hat and coat and carrying his axe.

"I take it you got my telegram?" Henry said and the President of the United States nodded.

"Yes I did. 'Come at once if convenient. If inconvenient, come all the same.' What's going on, Henry?"

After telling his friend to sit down, Henry recapped the entire story, starting from when Olivia Armstrong had appeared out of thin air and ending it with the big argument. Abe listened intently and when it was over, rose to his feet.

"You yelled at her?" He asked angrily.

"What else was I going to do? She was hysterical!"

"She was scared. If her time travel story is true, then she's in a completely different century and everything she knows about how to live is useless. I cannot believe you would have the audacity to yell at her!"

After giving a disdainful look to his friend, Abe walked up the stairs and to the room which the young girl was currently occupying. He could hear her sobbing through the door and he once again felt a flicker of rage toward Henry. Couldn't the man at least pretend he cared about anyone but himself?

"Miss Armstrong?" Abe gently called as he knocked on the door.

"Piss off!" Came the barely audible reply.

"What does that mean?" Henry asked as he came to stand by Lincoln.

Abe shrugged and quietly opened the door. The girl was lying on her stomach with her face burrried in a pillow. Quiet sobs shook her body as she carefully lifted herself up and turn to face them.

"I said piss o-..."

Shock blasted through her features as soon as she looked at Lincoln. Her eyes widened so much that both men could see the malachite amazingly well.

"Oh my God!" She said. "Mr. Lincoln, I mean President, I mean... I am so sorry! I didn't know..."

"It's quite alright Miss Armstrong," Lincoln said. "It's alright. Now, I've heard that you traveled back in time from the year..."

"2012," Olivia said.

"Right, 2012. I'm not saying that we don't believe you, but can you give us some sort of proof?"

"I did downstairs. You saw my guitar and my amp. Those are definitely not inventions from this time period. Well, except for the guitar, but you get my point."

"What exactly is this 'amp?'" Henry asked, speaking up for the first time.

"It stands for amplifier and it 'amplifies' the guitar's sound. It's battery powered so I don't need to plug it in."

"I see," Lincoln said, pretending that he actually knew what she was talking about. "Well I think that a demonstration of this 'amp' would be in your best interest to prove your story."

"Wait, are you saying that you want me to play my guitar for you guys?" Olivia asked incredulously.

"That is correct," Lincoln confirmed.

"No no no no. No way pal. There's no way I'm doing that."

"Then I guess your story isn't true," Henry said and Olivia shot him a glare.

"Alright, fine! I'll do it," she said. "But I'm not happy about it."

* * *

We headed down the stairs, each step feeling like a weight being added to my shoulders. How stupid is this? I have to play guitar for the President of the United States, who's supposed to be dead! Why is it that I'm always the one that's getting into crappy situations? Oh that's right, because I'm a freak!

As soon as we entered the living room, I forced myself to pick up my guitar and throw the strap over my shoulder. Henry and Lincoln took a seat directly in front of me and I mentally cursed them for being so close. I took a deep breath and switched on the amp, half hoping that it wouldn't work in the 1800s. To my dismay, it gave a buzz that told me it was ready.

"Right um... I'm not going to sing because I don't think it's necessary," I said and felt my face flush red.

I formed my fingers into the cord I wanted and played the chorus and solo to 21 Guns. The looks on Henry and Lincoln's faces were almost worth playing for them.

Almost.

Both men were absolutely speechless when I was done. I grinned and and powered down the amp and set my guitar against the wall. I turned my attention back to them to find that Lincoln had started clapping very softly. Henry was doing the same and I onice again felt my face turning red.

Awk-ward.

"Umm thanks," I said and curtsied like an idiot. Well like an idiot to me, probably like a normal person to them.

"Her story is certainly reasonable now," Lincoln said and Henry nodded in agreement.

A crack of thunder caused me to jump and we all looked out to the darkening sky. Rain clouds covered the stars and water began to drip on to the windows.

"If you don't mind, I must be going," Lincoln said and stood. "Mary's probably wondering where I am."

_Please don't leave me here with this assbutt_, I almost said as I gave Henry a worried glance.

Lincoln extended his hand toward me. I just looked at it before realizing I was supposed to shake it. I grasped it in my own and he smiled at me.

"Miss Armstrong," he said. "It was a pleasure to meet you."

"Same here," I said. "And sorry about the whole 'piss off' thing."

He laughed and Henry led him toward the door. While I was basking in the awe of shaking hands with maybe the most famous president ever, I saw said person say something low to Henry. From where I was standing, I could only make out the last sentence.

"Don't let them near her."

If that was not ominous, then I don't know what is.

* * *

A half an hour later, Henry and I were sitting in the living room. He'd offered to make me some tea, but I'm more of a coffee person and I could tell that he likes the bitter drink too. When I suggested it, he looked kind of caught off guard. Apparently in the 1800s, coffee's not a drink for a lady. Or for 14 year olds anyway.

I gave up on being lady-like years ago. Deal with it humanity.

"I still need to apologize for how I acted this morning," Henry said and looked at anything but me.

I was so surprised I nearly choked on my drink. I've known him for all of one day and I already put feeling emotions beneath him. Maybe I've got some apologizing of my own to do.

Meh. I'll do it later.

"You don't have to," I began, but he cut me off.

"I shouldn't have yelled at you. You were frightened and that was the wrong way to take care of things."

His light brown eyes were sincere and I couldn't find it in myself to not forgive him.

"Don't worry about it," I said with a smile. "Apology accepted."

He leaned back in his chair, seeming satisfied. I watched him out of the corner of my eye as I looked out the window. Just because I accepted his apology doesn't mean I still don't think he might kill me.

"So tell me a little more about yourself," He said and I turned my eyes back to his.

"Believe me man, you do not want to know about my life."

"Humor me."

"Alright then. I live in San Francisco, I'm a straight A student, meaning I do well in school, and I love music. I'm a Capricorn with a great sense of humor and I enjoy long walks on the beach."

I nearly cracked up at my own joke.

"Hardly seems bad at all."

"Just wait, there's more. When I chose to be punk, I threw away my chances to not be made fun of. Not a day goes by where I'm not being ridiculed by the popular crowd and even most of my friends."

"So why did you choose this life style?"

I smiled as I contemplated my answer. That's the question that I've always wanted someone to ask, but they've never cared enough to.

"Because punk means freedom to me. It's not all about wearing the clothes, listening to the music, or acting out. It's about doing what you want for yourself, not what other people want you to do."

Henry had a light smile on his face all throughout the time I was talking. If I'd known that telling him my sob story would be enough to make him less of a jerk, I would've done it a long time ago.

"So what about you?" I asked. "What's your story? How do you know Abraham Lincoln?"

"It doesn't concern you," he said with sudden sharpness, an irritated gaze now lurking in his eyes. "So I suggest that you don't ask."

"Alright, I'm going to bed," I said abruptly and got up. "Adios jerk."

I headed up the stairs and into my unofficial room, all the while thinking that I'm either the bravest or the stupidest person in the world. I slammed the door maybe a little bit harder than necessary and flopped down on the bed.

Jeez. Talking to Henry makes me want to slam my head against the wall until I pass out. What the hell is his problem? He acts like he's interested in my life but when I ask about his, he gets all defensive and turns into a huge jerk.

I rolled over and stared up at the ceiling. If I was at home right now, I would be either listening to music or working on my book; some sort of stress reliever like that. But I don't have those things. Typical. I get stuck in a pretty scary place and when I finally get some downtime, I don't have anything to do.

"Umm God or Jesus or whoever got me stuck in this nightmare, if you're actually out there, can you at least get me my iPod so I can not die?" I said out loud, feeling like a complete moron.

I waited for a few seconds, but nothing dropped into my hands like it does in the movies.

"Crap," I said as I lay back down and shut my eyes.

I guess I'm just the luckiest person in the world.

* * *

**Yay! Chapter 2 is done! It took forever to write! I hope you liked it. Please let me know if there's anything I should add or that I need to fix. Oh and please review ;) **

**Adios!**

**-Nopride**


	3. Watched

**Hey everyone, I'm back! Sorry it took so long, I was a on little vacation :) Anyways, hope you enjoy this chapter! Oh and big thanks to everyone for all the reviews! They toally make my day.  
**

**Disclaimer: Too lazy to write one. See previous chapters.  
**

** : Awww thanks! Here's the next chapter for ya!**

**Crazyblonde13: Thank you :) Hope you like this update!**

**Randomwriter90: Here ya go! And thanks for your review!**

**Kurounue13: Thanks! Please enjoy :)**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_"Umm God or Jesus or whoever got me stuck in this nightmare, if you're out there, can you at least get me my iPod so I cannot die?" I said out loud, feeling like a complete moron._

_I waited for a few seconds, but nothing dropped into my hands like it does in the movies. _

_"Crap," I said as I lay back down and shut my eyes._

_I guess I'm just the luckiest person in the world._

* * *

Now

Early morning light streamed through the windows when I opened my eyes. The storm seemed to have passed without much difficulty. Thank God. Ever since a huge tree fell on my house when I was a little kid, I've been scared to death of thunderstorms. That being said, did I get a wink of sleep last night? Wait for it... Wait for it... No.

Oh well; I'll be good to go as soon as I have some coffee and take a shower or whatever they use in the 1800s.

I managed to heave myself out of bed and on to my feet. My hair was behaving properly, but my clothes looked grimy and wrikled. Eh, it's not the first time that I've worn the same outfit for more than two days. I don't like the feeling of dirty, disgusting clothes, but I have this really bad habit of forgetting to do laundry on a weekly basis. I have so many clothes in my closet that I usually don't have to worry about laundry for like a month though.

I quietly opened the door and made my way down the stairs. It appeared that the World's Biggest Jerk wasn't up yet. Yay for me!

I grabbed my guitar and sat down in one of the comfy old fashioned chairs. I absently ran my fingers over the strings, playing random cords as I pleased. When it started to hurt, I pulled out my pic and started to play some more difficult stuff.  
I glanced around. The halls were empty and not a sound could be heard from any of the rooms. I guess that it wouldn't kill me to sing a little; So I took a deep breath and began.

* * *

Henry awoke to the sounds of soft singing and guitar playing. He closed his eyes for a brief few moments before getting up and dressing into his every day clothes. He opened his door and walked tiredly out into the hall, last night playing in his head.  
She'd called him... What was it?... A jerk. He didn't recall making any sudden movements. Perhaps it was supposed to be an insult? Either way, she'd looked pretty upset. It seemed as if he couldn't go a couple of hours without insulting her.

Question: Was that her fault or his?

No matter. He would just apologize and it would all be done with. Until he did it again that is.

He shuffled toward the living room, the effects of morning still not leaving him entirely. When he reached the entryway, he stopped cold. Miss Armstrong was leaning back in a chair with her feet against the wall and her guitar on her lap. Henry quickly stood behind the archway so that she wouldn't see him.

She was saying something about a pay phone. Pay phone? What the Devil's a pay phone. He shook his head in wonder and focused back on the music. The next line was about someone's husband in jail.

Now he was really confused. Whose husband was in prison?

"..._And that's about the time that bitch hung up on me! Nobody likes you when you're twenty-three and you're still amused by prank phone calls_."

Henry felt his eyes widen in shock. Where in the world did this young girl learn to talk like that? He strained his ears once more to find that she'd changed the song.

"Ah screw it, I'll play that one later... _Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road. Time grabs you by the wrist, directs you where to go. So make the best of this test and don't as why. It's not a question but a lesson learned in time. It's something unpredictable but in the end is right. I hope you had the time of your life_."

Ah now this one he liked more. It was more melodic and soft. Nothing like what she'd just been playing.

"_So take the photographs and still frames in your mind. Hang it on a shelf in good health and good time. Tattoos of memories and dead skin on trial. For what it's worth, it was worth all the while. It's something unpredictable but in the end is right. I hope you had the time of your life_.'

"_It's something unpredictable but in the end is right. I hope you had the time of your life."_

Henry watched as she slowed the tempo down. He was transfixed. Up until yesterday, he'd never seen a guitar played like that. He smiled softly when she ended it quietly.

"_It's something undprepredictable, but in the end is right. I hope you had the time of your life_."

As he stepped into the room, Henry Sturgess felt happy for the first time in many years.

"You know, you have a really pretty voice."

* * *

"You know, you have a really pretty voice."

I yelled in surprise and felt my chair begin to tip backward. I braced myself for the inevitable pain that was sure to come and shut my eyes. But then the chair was back on it's feet again.

I looked behind me to see that Henry was holding on to the back of it. He must've saved me from falling... And that also means he must've heard me singing.

Damn it.

"Uh... How long we're you standing there?" I asked nervously.

"Long enough to hear that last song. I didn't know you could sing."

"It's not really my forte," I said as I stood and set my guitar back against the wall and powered down the amp.

He looked skeptical for a while but then shook his head and walked over to a messy looking desk. He picked up a few papers, studied them for a bit, and then put them down again. He seemed to be debating saying something and even though I tried to tell myself otherwise, I was dying to know what it was.

"I would like to apologize for last night," he said after a while. "I shouldn't have..."

"You can stop saying sorry you know," I intervened. "It's not like I don't forgive. Like they say, forgive and forget."

"Like who says?" He asked with a confused head tilt.

_That does not look adorable, that does not look adorable_, I thought to myself. _Aw who am I kidding, yes it does!_

"So what's the plan for today?" I asked to change the subject. "I don't know about you, but I can't take another day of being locked indoors."

He smiled a little and turned toward me.

"I was thinking that I could show you around the town."

"Oh my god that would be awesome! I've always wanted to see what this place looked like in the 1800s! Wait a minute, where are we?"

"About twenty miles away from Springfield Illinois."

"Springfield? Like in the Simpsons? Never mind, don't answer that. Anyway, going into town sounds cool. Ummm..."

Now this is going to be awkward.

"Do you have a shower or something I can use to clean up?" I said, trying to keep myself from blushing.

"Erm yes," Henry said, also looking extremely uncomfortable. "Down the hall and to your left."

"Thanks," I muttered and headed that way.

"I'll leave some clothes for you outside the door."

"Right you do that."

Like I said. Awk-ward.

Thanks to my awesome lack of history skills, I had no idea that the shower had already been invented. So you can imagine my surprise when I stepped into the bathroom and was greeted by man's greatest innovation. I shut the door and turned the water on. My happiness at having a shower was pretty much shattered when I realized that the water was absolutely freezing.

But that didn't matter to me. As soon as I was done and in a soft towel, I retrieved the clothes from outside the door and shut it again.

I have one question to ask: why?

Why? Why? Why? Why?

Why do girls have to always wear dresses in the 1800s? Not just any dresses, but giant poofy ones with scratchy material and a stupid wide rimmed bottom. To top it all off, there's a bonnet that goes along with it!

Another part of me wondered why Henry, who is one hundred percent dude, has women's clothes. One more awkward question has been added to the list!

I quickly put on the dress and all the schmancy stuff that it included (like three different parts to the hem and pretty uncomfortable shoes) but held the bonnet in my hands. I opened the door and stepped out into the hall and started to make my way into the living room. Henry was sitting at his desk when I entered. He looked up and immediately stood as soon as he saw me.

"What do you think?" I asked and spun around. "I look pretty good in a dress. Do I look completely impeccable?"

"You look very nice," He said with a smile as he walked around the desk. "Follow me."

We walked out the front door and a loud noise caused me to jump and instinctively grab on to Henry's arm. He laughed and led me to a horse drawn carriage where the horse that had scared me was hitched. He climbed in first and then helped me up before taking the reins.

"Have you ever ridden a horse?" He asked once we were on the road.

"I used to take lessons when I was a little kid. But then the ranch charged too much and I had to stop. That and my dad was afraid I was going to fall off."

"Why was he afraid of that? Everyone falls off eventually."

"I think it had something to do with his favorite movie star breaking his neck because his horse threw him off."

"Well at least you have some experience. I don't have to teach you now."

"You wouldn't be able to. Man, I'm the hardest person to teach extracurricular crap to. It's easier to just let me figure it out on my own."

That's the honest to God truth too. During P.E. at school, I never follow the rules, I rewrite them. Some call it cheating, but I call it a smart way to win. Whenever we played soccer, one of the rules was no goalies. It took me all of two seconds to decide that that was stupid. Naturally, the other kids complained (those that weren't on my team) but in my defense, I wasn't in the goal, I was just defending the area around it. So technically, I wasn't a goalie.

Henry chuckled and I'll admit that I took pride in causing it. Laughter is my weapon and as long as I wield it, I can get myself out of almost anything. Just ask the supervisors of the countless detentions I was supposed to go to.

"We'll have to think of something to say about your hair," He said, completely pushing me out of my memories.

"What for?" I asked, defensiveness making it's way into my tone in huge waves.

"Well, it's just that... Women in this time period don't wear their hair like a b-... Like that."

"Dude," I said and turned to face him. "Please tell me that you were not going to say 'like a boy.'. Because if you were, you better start apologizing right now."

"Miss Armstrong I was simply trying to be realistic..."

"Ten... Nine."

"This is ridiculous! You're acting like a child."

"I am one. Eight... Seven."

"I'm not going to apologize when I'm thinking of your well being."

"You don't want to find out what happens when I get down to one. Six... Five."

Henry rolled his eyes and focused on the road. I smirked because that was the usual reaction that I get whenever I start my counting trick. It's not really glamorous and I don't use it a lot, only around my few friends who are used to me.

"Four... Three."

"I don't care what happens when you get to one, Miss Armstrong. This doesn't affect me."

"Two... One..."

"Alright, alright! I'm sorry if I offended you again. Just stop acting like a brat."

I grinned and leaned back in the seat. Battle won.

"But we still need to think of something for your hair."

I frowned and rolled my eyes. Battle lost.

"Why don't we just say that I got gum stuck in it and had to hack it off?" I said and Henry pursed his lips.

"That would work," He said, completely ignoring my 21st century term. "And you'll have to wear the bonnet."

"But I don't know how to put it on!" I whined and he sighed heavily.

"I'll help you once we get to town."

"Great. Looking foward to it. And one more question. Why do you have women's clothes?"

I knew that I'd struck a nerve when I noticed the downcasting of his eyes and the slight twitching in his jaw. Immediately, I changed gears and went from 'brat' to 'Mother Theresa.'

"They were my wife's," he said after a while and I looked down at my hands.

"What happened to her?" I asked, even though I already had a feeling I knew.

"She... Fell ill and died soon after."

"Oh," I said and avoided his eyes. "I'm sorry. I wouldn't have asked if I'd known."

He smiled sadly and turned his attention to the trees ahead of us.

"It's not your fault, Miss Armstrong... It was mine."

* * *

We pulled into town in about an hour and a half. My butt was totally killing me and I jumped out of the carriage almost before it stopped moving. Henry climbed down and helped me put on the bonnet after politely informing me that women do not _jump_ from carriages, they _step_. I rolled my eyes and waved a hand at him before allowing myself to fully look around.

Okay for the record, I expected less clean, more medieval, even though these people have long since been out of the Dark Ages. Sure, the streets were muddy and gross, but it was nothing like I'd pictured. There was no smog in the air and all the buildings were either made out of brick or wood. It was pretty small and I could almost see the end of it.

All in all, it was pretty nice.

"Well this is Springfield," Henry said. "New York, it is not, but it does alright. Are you ready?"

His hands were in his pockets and he raised his arm from his side. It didn't take me long to realize I was supposed to hold on. I smiled and we walked along the sidewalk arm in arm. I felt like something out of a Clint Eastwood movie and believe it or not, it was actually pretty cool.

"Hello Henry," a man said when we we passed in front of his shop. He glanced at me and smiled before continuing. "And who is this lovely lady?"

"Speed, allow me to introduce Miss Olivia Armstrong," Henry said. "Miss Armstrong, this is Mr. Joshua Speed. He runs the General Store."

"And I know all the town stories," he said with a wink at me. "If you ever need to hear the latest update on someone's life, I'm your man."

"It's nice to meet you," I said with a smile.

From what I could tell, Speed seemed to be a nice guy. His hair was long and the kind of light blond that's almost orange but isn't. His eyes were kind and he had a friendly face.

"Miss Armstrong, I have to deliver a letter to the post office," Henry said. "Will you be alright here? You can wait in the store. I won't be very long."

"Yeah I'll be fine," I said and in a lower voice added, "Dude, I'm in the punk scene. I can handle myself."

Henry nodded and exchanged a look with Speed that had 'make sure she doesn't do anything crazy' written all over it. If I was easily offended by remarks to my personality, then I would be extremely butt hurt. But I'm not, so I don't care.

Once Henry left, Speed motioned for me to come in. The store wasn't big, only large enough to hold the bare necessities. Jars of preservatives lined the shelves as well as bags of dried goods. Raw fabrics were behind the counter along with ribbons and all that fancy girl stuff.

Now because I'm me, I didn't go to the lady section. Instead I went straight to the tools section and began to sort through all the manly stuff. Before I got sent to the 1800s and got my life turned upside down, I was pretty good at building stuff at school. I joined the engineering class and actually created a model car that ran on water. Then the evil jerk that was my teacher smashed it with a hammer because he said I shouldn't be able to build that kind of stuff.

"You're not from here, are you?" Speed said as he appeared behind me.

"What gave me away?" I asked with a smirk on my face.

"Typically, the women that enter my shop don't ignore the fabrics."

I laughed and leaned against a barrel, folding my arms over my chest. Speed looked a little bewildered for a moment, but then smiled as well.

"So how do you know Henry?" He asked as he hopped on to the counter. "He's kind of hard to like."

"Yeah he is," I said and grinned. "I'm his friend's daughter. He's away on business right now and he had me stay with him."

"What's the business?"

"Um... Eastwood Trading Co. It's pretty small and foreign."

"Ahh. So where are you from?"

"We live in California, but the company is stationed in... Chile."

"Where is that?"

"South America."

Our conversation was interrupted as the door opened and hit the wall with a bang. An extremely pretty blond woman walked in and from the way she carried herself, it was obvious that she was wealthy. She also had an arrogant air about her as her eyes searched the store and landed on us.

"Speed," she said. "I need to talk to you."

"It'll have to wait, Vadoma," Speed said. "I'm with a client."

The woman's, Vadoma's, eyes turned to mine and she walked foward. She stopped about two feet away and seemed to study me.

"I haven't seen you around these parts before," she said in a cold tone. "What's your name, girl?"

For a second, I could only stare in stunned silence. She shifted her weight and rolled her eyes.

"Answer me when I'm talking to you!" She exclaimed and that was enough to pull me out of my daze.

"Look lady," I said and stepped toward her. "I don't know who you are or who you think you are, but let's you and I get something straight. No stranger tells me what to do, _especially_ when a demanding tone is used. So I suggest you try again and ask nicely and maybe I'll answer in the same way."

She stared at me with her mouth hanging open in shock. Speed was suffering the same fate and I leaned against a shelf. She didn't like my words? Tough. Stubbornness is in my blood and if she doesn't like, then she can go to hell.  
Vadoma opened her mouth to say something, but Speed quickly ushered her out the door.

"Thanks for stopping by, we'll have to talk later, Vadoma. Bye!"

He then turned to face me with a huge grin on his face.

"I cannot believe you talked like that to Vadoma!" He exclaimed.

"What's her problem, anyway?" I asked and walked over to inspect the dried goods.

He suddenly looked very, very scared.

"Just... Watch yourself around her," he said and went behind the counter. "She's a very cruel woman."

"That's a nice way of putting it," Henry said as he entered the store. "I saw Vadoma leave. What happened?"

"Miss Armstrong insulted her," Speed said, which earned a 'didn't I tell you to watch her' look from Henry.

"Where I come from, we call it a burn," I said. "And she had it coming."

Henry rolled his eyes and motioned me over.

"Well, we should be going," he said. "Thank you Speed."

"Any time. It was a pleasure meeting you, Miss Armstrong."

"You too," I said and walked out.

It took Henry all of thirty minutes to actually say something to me once we were back in the carriage.

"You are perhaps the most reckless young girl I've ever known," he said angrily.

"What were you thinking?"

"I was thinking that someone needed to tell her off," I defended. "And Speed obviously wasn't going to, so I stepped in."

"That was a very idiotic thing to do. You're lucky I showed up when I did."

"Oh sue me, Henry! What was I supposed to do, let her walk all over me? I don't think so!"

"Just," he said and closed his eyes. "Try not to be so careless... You could get hurt."

"Thanks Dad," I muttered sarcastically and turned away.

The rest of the trip was silent and all throughout it, I couldn't shake the feeling that we were being watched.**  
**

* * *

**Again, sorry it took so long to update, but I hope this made up for it. I hope I kept everyone in character, or sort of at least. Let me know what you think! :)  
**

**-Nopride**


	4. I'm Singing in the Rain

**Hey guys, sorry that I haven't updated in a while. I was on a much needed vacation :) Anyways, this chapter is shorter and kind of random, but it's used kind of as comical relief because it is a beginning of an end. I'm not going to tell you which end it is :) But I will say that it's not the end of this story. Trust me. Hope you like!**

**Disclaimer: See previous chapters. Also don't own lyrics to Singin' in the Rain**

**A fan: No worries about the computer thing. I love Olivia too! Her punky attitude is what makes her characterask cool (in my opinion anyways).**

**Crazyblonde13: Yeah her short hair is a bit of a problem for that time period. But then again, maybe it will help her some day... *looks around and coughs***

**xNinjaxBunnyx: Lol thanks for your review! And yes, Henry was very nice looking in the movie lol**

**RainbowSenpai: Thank you! Hope you like this chapter :)**

**Randomwriter90: I finally have a new update for ya! *sets off party sparklers*****  
**

**Oh and before I forget *digs note out of pocket* If you have any requests for rock n roll/ punk songs I haven't used yet, feel free to suggest them. Also, you can suggest some scenes and I'll try to work them in. No slash though.**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_"Just," he said and closed his eyes. "Try not to be so careless... You could get hurt."_

_"Thanks Dad," I muttered sarcastically and turned away._

_The rest of the trip was silent and all throughout it, I couldn't shake the feeling that we were being watched. _

* * *

"So Vadoma is, like, a world class bitch?" I asked as we sat in the living room.

"That's how I like to put it," Henry said with a smile. "She's very powerful. Her brother owns a large plantation a ways from here."

"Whoa whoa whoa. They're slave owners?"

"Yes, like the majority of the south."

"Man, I frickin' hate it when people act like they own one another. I mean, we're all humans aren't we?"

Henry nearly choked on the water he was drinking and I stared at him in confusion.

"You okay?" I asked and he nodded.

I sat back in my chair and looked out to the darkening sky. Raindrops fell on to the window with a little plop noise that I found quite amusing. I don't mind rain, as long as there's no thunder and no lightning. But when it turns into an all out hurricane, that's when I start to freak out.

"So you never did further explain this 'punk.'" He said after a moment of silence. "What is it exactly?"

"It really doesn't work in this time period. Well, I guess it could because it's anti establishment. Anyways, it's kind of like a rebellion, but for good reasons. It's a 'power to the people' sort of thing."

Before Henry could respond, the rain began to fall harder against the window, the noise of the impact ten times louder.

Suddenly, I got a brilliant idea.

"Come on!" I said as I jumped out of my chair. "Let's go outside!"

"Miss Armstrong, it's pouring out there," He chided and I rolled my eyes.

"Aw please? You know the whole 'getting sick from cold' thing is a myth, right? Plllllleeeeeeaaaaassse?"

"Miss Armstrong, you are acting like a child!"

"Correction, I'm acting like a child who's about to go outside."

"Miss Armstrong..."

"I'm going anyways, whether you say I can or not. You're not my dad, ya know."

Henry seemed irritated, but he closed his eyes and said through his teeth,

"Fine. Five minutes."

I grinned and ran through the front door, barely hearing Henry's footsteps as he followed me. I paused under a wooden overhang and took a deep breath.

"Miss Armstrong?" He asked when he appeared next to me.

"I've always wanted to do this," I said and stepped out into the downpour.

I opened my arms and tilted to my head to the sky.

"_I'm siiiiiiinnnnnnngggggin' in the rain. Just Singin' in the rain. What a glorious feeling, I'm happy again. I'm laughing at clouds, so dark up above. The sun's in my heart and I'm ready for love_."

I looked over to Henry and waved my hand at him.

"Come on!"

He shook his head and sighed.

"Miss Armstrong, this is silly."

"That's the point! _Let the stormy clouds chase everyone from the place. Come on with the rain, I've a smile on my face. I walk down the lane with a happy refrain. Just Singin', Singin' in the rain_."

I spun around in circles, belting the song out at the top of my lungs. Ever since I saw the movie, I've always wanted to act out some of the scenes.

"Miss Armstrong, it's been five minutes. Get back to the house."

"Not until you sing in the rain."

"What? No! Miss Armstrong..."

"Then I'm gonna stay out here. I've got another verse."

I saw him roll his eyes as he stepped into the rain. I smiled triumphantly and began to sing again. And maybe I imagined it, but I swore I saw a small smile form on Henry's face.

* * *

Vadoma watched from the nearby tree line with her nails firmly clawed into the bark. She saw the little brat, Olivia Armstrong, acting like a complete fool and singing -_singing_!- in the rain. Well, at least she'd finally found something Henry seemed to care about.

Soon, she would be something he could grieve about.

* * *

**Yikes! What's Vadoma gonna do? Tune in next week for the next update. oh and please review :)**


	5. S Is For 'Send You Back in Time'

**Hey guys! I decided to update sooner because... Well I felt like it :) I would also just like to take the time right now to thank all of you who have followed this story and reviewed it. It really means a lot to me and again, thanks. Here's the next chapter for all of you!**

**Disclaimer: See previous chapters.**

**Randomwriter90: Thanks for your review! Yeah, Vadoma is plotting something. Something bad...**

**Crazyblonde13: Yay! Another fellow person that has arachnophobia! Her hair will be a semi-important issue. Trust me. Also glad you liked the 'we're all human thing.' :)**

**A fan: Yeah, they are starting to bond. It's interesting to see a nicer side of Henry. In the movie, he seemed kinda like a jerk, but one with a heart. Lol him nearly choking on water was funny :)**

**Ashfan16: Aww thanks! Here's the next update.**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_Vadoma watched from the nearby tree line with her nails firmly clawed into the bark. She saw the little brat, Olivia Armstrong, acting like a complete fool and singing -singing!- in the rain. Well, at least she'd finally found something Henry seemed to care about._

_Soon, she would be something he could grieve about. _

* * *

Now

Henry led me back into the house, me shivering, him... Well not doing much of anything. Both of us were soaking wet and even though my teeth feel like they're going to explode, singing in the rain was totally worth it.

"Go sit by the fire," he said and began to walk down the hallway. "I'll get you something to dry off with."

Aw. World's Biggest Jerk may actually have a heart.

"Don't sit on the chair, it's expensive."

Never mind.

I muttered some what should best be described as 'inappropriate' words under my breath and sat down on the hardwood floor in front of the huge fireplace. My bangs kept falling into my face, despite my annoyed attempts to keep them behind my ear and I made a mental note to get my hands on some scissors.

My eyes scanned around the top of the mantle, recording the books and decorative items that were, in my opinion, pretty ugly. At the very edge was a small frame that contained what looked like a hand painted portrait. The only reason it caught my eye was because it was the only good looking item of the bunch.

Frowning, I stood up to get a closer look at the woman in the picture. She was beautiful with brown hair that seemed to shine. Her eyes were soft and kind and judging by this, she'd probably never hurt anyone in her life.

I was just about to pull it off the ledge, but Henry yet again chose a really bad/perfect time to show up.

"What are you doing?"

Okay, thank God I didn't take the picture or else I probably would've thrown it at him as a weapon.

"Is that your wife?" I asked, completely ignoring his question.

He took a few steps foward and wiped the dust from the picture's face, while I stared like a creeper.

"Yes," he said after a while.

"Oh... Listen man, I still don't get how her death could've been your fault if she was sick like you said."

He handed me a towel and I took it gratefully, knowing that I would finally stop shaking. Henry turned and sat down in the expensive chair that I was not allowed to soil while I continued to gaze into the fire. His eyes were downcast, showing that I'd again struck a nerve.

Am I smooth or what?

"Right uhh," I stammered and headed toward the stairs. "It's uh... It's late. I think I'll go to bed now."

He was looking off into space and said nothing to me when I walked by.

I stopped halfway across the living room and turned my attention to him. Now I may be kind of introverted in a few ways, but I know when something is bothering people. Call me a softy, call me a wimp, but when something's up, I like to make people feel better.

So that's why instead of going to my room like I probably should've, I walked over to Henry and awkwardly patted his shoulder.

"Whatever happened with your wife, there was most likely nothing you could've done to stop it," I said and he turned around in his chair to look at me.

"You don't know the story," he nearly whispered, his voice so small and strained that it didn't sound like him at all.

"I know that you're afraid to open up to people because you think that you'll lose them. You keep them at arm's length so that if they die before you, it won't hurt as bad. But no matter how much you distance yourself, it's still going to tear through you just as strongly."

"And how are you so sure of what I believe?"

I steeled myself and took a deep breath before continuing.

"Because I know what it's like to lose someone you love."

He didn't say anything and I took that as a sign for me to keep talking.

"Two years ago, my friend Jimmy went missing from his house. I thought that he ran away cuz he'd been saying that he was going to for a while. Every couple weeks, I would get a letter written in red ink. It always contained the lyrics to one of our favorite songs. Whenever I found one in the mail, I knew that he was okay.

"But one day the police showed up at my front door with a pile of photos in their hands. They'd been to Jimmy's house, but his parents didn't care enough to answer any of their questions because to them, Jimmy was always the screw up, the bad child. So the cops told me to sit down and... They asked if I could identify the body in the pictures.

"It didn't take a genius to figure out that it was Jimmy. Apparently, his body had been found in one of the trees in Central Park with a gunshot wound to the head. The idiots said that it was a suicide, that he'd climbed the tree and done it himself. But to me it didn't add up. I knew Jimmy better than anyone, maybe even himself. He wasn't the suicidal type; he thought too highly of himself, of the people he loved as well. He wouldn't just give up like that.

"In my mind then, and to this day, he was murdered. I wouldn't let it go and when the police released the evidence, I looked through all of it at least one hundred times. I was desperate to prove that it was murder, not suicide. Of course, I never found any decent new evidence, but that didn't matter to me. What mattered was that I was so convinced that I knew Jimmy so well, that whatever I believed was automatically true.

"And then came the guilt. I felt that if I'd taken the time to ask him what was wrong, he wouldn't have run away. I thought that it was my fault... Sometimes I still do. Ever since then, I've never trusted anyone, man, woman, doesn't matter."

Still nothing.

"My point is," I said, resisting the urge to seem irritated. "It never gets any easier, dealing with death. You never really get over it, but you never bury it either. You live with it until you don't have to anymore. You put on a brave face for the people around you and you go through life as normally as possible. And the one thing that you should avoid at all times is letting it run you. You shouldn't function based on it, you should function based on you."

I started to go toward the stairs once again. When I was about to disappear, Henry's voice stopped me.

"Miss Armstrong?" He asked and I turned to face him.

"Yeah?"

"...Have a good night."

I smiled and nodded.

"You too."

"...And thank you."

I didn't know what to say to that, so I just nodded again and went up the stairs. I walked into my room and shut the door behind me before walking over to my bed. I sat down and heard something crinkle beneath me. Frowning, I moved over and held up a crumpled piece of paper. I opened it and began to read.

'_Great job Livvy. Keep it up and we'll see if you can actually help. But remember, history is not meant to be changed, only remembered. Although you have the power to distort it, think of the Butterfly Effect. I know, I know, no Kutcher references. Still, I think it's good advice._

_-St._

_Ps: Here I go again on my own_'

I folded the paper again and put it on the dresser beside the bed. I quickly got changed into my normal 21st Century clothes and turned out the light. I couldn't fall asleep though.

Seriously, what the hell? I've been stuck in the 1800s for all this time and I'm just now getting a clue (that really doesn't make a whole lot of sense) of why I'm here? Eesh. Whoever, or whatever, put this thing together really did a piss poor job.

A letter. That's all I get. A letter signed with the initial 'S.'

And what's even worse? This mythical creature has the power to send me mail via the Time Travel Express, but it doesn't even think to send my iPod. That's one thoughtful being that I'm dealing with here.

"Okay, man, I've had it!" I whispered harshly. "What the hay is going on?"

Naturally, of course, I got no answer.

"Typical. Why can't you at least tell me what you are? Castiel? The Ghost of Christmas Past? Hell, I don't give a rat's ass if you're Santa Clause! Just take me home!"

Again, no answer.

And with me being me, I fell asleep totally and completely pissed off.

* * *

**Well, that's typical Liv. Instead of fearing whatever sent her back in time, she insults it. Lol can anyone guess what beginning of an end it is yet? If not, it'll be revealed eventually :) Anyways, hope you liked this chapter! Please review!**

**-Nopride**


	6. Time Travel Express

**Hello everyone and welcome back! I thanketh everyoneth foreth the revieweths. Lol sorry, my friend dared me write the second sentence like that :)**

**So I am finally over my awful period of writer's block (yippee!) and the chapters won't be so short anymore. Again, big thanks to everyone for the reviews! You guys have kept this story goin!**

**Anyways, hope you like this update! Oh, in the last chapter, the letter was signed 'St' but that was just a typo :)**

**Disclaimer: See previous.**

**Crazyblonde13: I agree, the whole thing with Jimmy was sad. But this chapter is less depressing, promise :)**

**Ashfan16: Thank you! Here's the next chapter!**

**Before you read, has anyone guessed who Olivia's name is a reference to? I've kinda hinted at it through out the fic. The answer will be revealed when this story is over (aka not for a while), but feel free to state your thoughts in your reviews! **

**Enjoy! **

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_"Okay man I've had it!" I whispered harshly. "What the hay is going on?"_

_Naturally, of course, I got no answer._

_"Typical. Why can't you at least tell me what you are? Castiel? The Ghost of Christmas Past? Hell, I don't give a rat's ass if you're Santa Clause! Just take me home!"_

_Again, no answer._

_And with me being me, I fell asleep totally and completely pissed off._

* * *

Now

"Adam."

Vadoma hardly spared the other vampires a glance as she made her way into the elegant room. Her brother looked up with a small smirk on his face when he took in her calculating look.

"Have you found something?" He asked, voice clipped with barely contained excitement.

"I think we'll be able to strike them in two places at once," Vadoma said and stopped in front of him. "Lincoln's son is so unprotected and..."

She glanced around a little nervously, as if she thought she'd been followed.

"Henry Sturges has recently taken a young girl into his care."

Adam laughed loudly and banged his hands on the desk behind him. Vadoma watched her brother with uncertainty just barely showing through her eyes as he finally regained his composure and saw that she was serious.

"Henry?" He barked. "What makes you think he would care about anything, let alone a child?"

"I know what I saw. He seemed almost... Happy. He was smiling while she was dancing and singing in the pouring rain."

Adam grinned and took a seat behind the desk. He grabbed a pen and a piece of paper and began to write.

"What are you doing?" Vadoma asked as she walked around to look over his shoulder.

"Well I think it's time we commenced an attack of our own; one that will cripple the North beyond repair."

* * *

Have you ever had the feeling that you were crying in your sleep? Because I can tell you first hand that it's not fun. Or nice. Or pretty.

I sat up and wiped my eyes, surprised when my hand came back tear streaked. I frowned and tried to remember my dream that i'd had. I could only get tidbits of it, stuff like a room at night and a weird infected wound on someone's wrist that reminded me of a zombie bite.

I shook my head and heaved myself to my feet, becoming slightly dizzy at the sudden movement. I gripped the bedside table for support and managed to regain control after a while, but I was left with a small headache.

Today is not going to be a good day.

And then I remembered the note signed with the weird initial 'S.' I searched frantically for it so I could have it ready to show to Henry, but I stopped. Why should I show it to him? Not only is it for me, but he isn't exactly the nicest guy in the world, even though he does have his moments.

So I was about to open the door and play dumb for the day when a sound that rivaled static electricity erupted behind me. I whirled around to find a still smoking box sitting on the edge of my bed with a note attached to it.

I ran over and tore the paper from its place, hissing slightly at how hot it was. I opened it carefully (I don't know what I expected it to do. Blow up? Squirt black ink in my face like my friend Dean managed to rig my backpack to do when I opened it?) and began to read._  
_

_'Olivia,_

_Don't start regressing when you've only just started to make progress. You did well yesterday, don't screw up now. You have to remember that we're watching. _

_Enclosed in this box are some more of your belongings that you've been annoying the hell out of us to send. So to shut you up and get some peace back here, we decided to include them in our next, what is it you've named it, Time Travel Express package. Try not to let anyone else besides your friends see them or else it could spell trouble with a capital T. _

_We know that you must have so many questions. 'Why am I here?' 'Who are you and what do you want with me?' 'When do I get to go home?' 'Why 1863 and not somewhere fun like the 1970s?' Keep in mind that we can only answer some and our answers might not be the ones you're looking for. But you're inquisitive. Maybe you'll figure them out on your own. _

_You're there for a reason, Olivia, and an important one at that. Until you can say with confidence what it is, you're going to remain in the past. As for who we are, I can't tell you. Like I said before, you'll have to figure it out. There's no doubt in my mind that you will, but some of the others are skeptical. Most have the utmost certainty that you will succeed, but there's always that small percentage. Think of them like bad pieces of food. While there's so many other good pieces, you could eat the one that will give you food poisoning._

_If you have anything to say to us, like more demands that drive us nuts, write them down now and put them in the box. We'll take care of the rest. You might have to wait around a while for a reply so in the mean time, enjoy your stay in Hotel 1863. _

_Best of luck,_

_-S_

_Ps: Don't look at the box after you seal it with your response inside. The last person who did went blind.'_

I must've read and reread the letter a bunch of times before I realized that both of my feet were asleep and I should be opening the box. I tapped it a few times to make sure it wasn't still hot and began to tear at the tape that sealed it when I felt that it wasn't.

Now I'm not the best at opening things (it's not my fault that they child proof everything so much that it's teenager proof as well) so to make a long story short, the final score before I found the scissors next to be my bed was Box: one, Olivia: zero.

When I finally manged to saw my way through the stupid tape, I ripped the rest of the box open with relative ease.

"Take that you cardboard S.O.B!" I exclaimed triumphantly and looked inside.

So much stuff was crammed in the ammount of space and that's when it occurred to me that you could fit a large dog in it if you wanted to. Yeah it was that big. On one side were my favorite pair of black Vans and some dark blue jeans. Whoever sent this had packed well. None of my band t-shirts were in there (I seriously doubt that 1800s people would know who Kurt Cobain or Johnny Rotten are), only my plain, boring ones.

And oh thank God, they remembered to send me clean underwear!

I grinned happily and turned to the other side of the box. I pulled out some of the books that I've never gotten around to reading at home and set them on my bed. Other minute things included some hygiene products like a tooth brush, tooth paste, and other stuff like that. When I got through all the necessary stuff, I hit pay dirt (ha ha 1800s term). I gave a squeal of delight when I pulled out two jumbo sized bags of Jolly Ranchers and mini dark chocolate Crunch bars. They are my two favorite candies and I have felt seriously deprived going all this time with out them.

After I took out the candy and hid it in the dresser, I noticed that my diary that I haven't written a word in since last year was poking from the pile of clothes. I picked it up and nearly dropped the pack of ballpoint pens that were packed inside. On the front cover was a torn sheet of notebook paper that said,

_'Quills are hard to write with, especially for someone as artistically challenged as yourself. Modern pens will do.'_

Man, S really knows how to make a girl feel special.

I grabbed the clothes and shoved them in the drawers of the dresser. I was about to grab a piece of paper to write a response with when something purple and shiny in the box caught my eye. I grabbed it and nearly jumped up and down with happiness. I guess that they finally got the memo and sent me my iPod! Now I don't have to work to fall asleep!

Another note, to my irritation, was taped to the back of the music player:_  
_

_'Send back with box when charge becomes insufficient.'_

Well noted my most likely supernatural friend.

After safely hiding all the modern items in different places in the room, I tore a piece of paper from my diary and began to write my response. What I wrote about mainly switched off between asking questions and stating how pissed I was. When I was done, I put the letter in the box and closed it.

Remembering what the note from S had said as an after thought, I turned around and closed my eyes just in case. Immediately, the air in the room began to heat up again and even though they weren't open, my eyes could detect the change in the lighting. The sound of static electricity came back, along with a weird humming noise and I thought about covering my ears too.

And then it just stopped without any warning or sign that it was going to. The sound didn't gradually fade and the light didn't eventually dim. It was like someone had snapped it out of existence.

I gingerly opened one eye and looked around the room, wondering if I'd set it on fire. To my relief, no flames were crawling up the walls (but there was a really big spider that I would have to make Henry kill later) and the heat in the room vanished after a few moments.

I slowly turned around and looked over at the bed where ten seconds ago, my Time Travel Express care package had been sitting.

Now, there's nothing but empty space.

* * *

Henry was already awake and sitting in the Expensive Chair (as I have dubbed it) near the fireplace when I made my way downstairs. All of the letters were clutched in my hands and I thought about how easy it would be to rip them or throw them in the fire. I didn't do either and instead looked out the window to my right. Although it had stopped raining, the sky was still a grayish color and judging by this, it was probably cold as Mt. Everest out there.

I turned away from the ugly weather and cleared my throat loudly to get Henry's attention. He turned around, noticed my expression, and was immediately on his feet.

"What is it?" He asked, voice casual but eyes filled with a tad bit of concern.

Aww.

"Got this last night," I said and handed him the first letter.

He took it with slight confusion and quickly scanned it.

"What does it mean?"

I shrugged.

"Hell if I know. Here. These arrived just a few minutes ago."

I gave him the rest and went to sit down, but he grabbed my arm and effectively stopped me.

_Not this again_, I thought and faced him once more.

"What happened to your hand?" He asked.

"I have no idea what you're talking abou- oh..."

An angry red blister stretched from one side of my palm to the other, cracked in some places, others not. I softly pressed two fingers to it and withdrew them with a hiss of pain.

Thanks a lot S. You're lucky I'm right handed.

"Papers were hot when I grabbed em.' Didn't even know I had that," I said and tried to pull free of the iron grip he had on my wrist. "It's nothing... You can let go now."

"That's not nothing, Miss Armstrong," he said and began to tow me toward the kitchen. "I have something that can help."

Even if I didn't agree to follow him, he would've been able to drag me there anyways.

"You know, the whole 'Miss Armstrong' thing is kinda getting old. You can call me Olivia."

He launched into some lecture about that being impolite, but I managed to tune most of it out. I'm really good at that; I had a teacher one time who was boring as hell and I would've died if not for my awesome ability to ignore. Somehow, I was able to pass that class with over a hundred percent. God, I love my subconscious; it's saved me from so much.

We finally reached the kitchen (the house really is huge) and he sat me down in one of the chairs by the table. Sheesh dude. I just burned my hand; it's not like I have a concussion or anything. But apparently, that was beside the point. I saw him open a cabinet, but then I lost interest and stared at the blister.

I can count on one hand how many times I've burned myself and they're all pretty stupid. The first (and most painful not counting today) time was when I was eight years old. I was making myself some lunch on the stove and I accidentally burned my finger on the pan. The blister that formed there had looked like a dinosaur; I'm serious too. When viewed a certain way, it was in the perfect shape of a triceratops.

The second time... You don't want to know. Trust me.

"Honestly Miss Armstrong," Henry said, exasperated as he sat down next to me and gently placed my hand palm up on the table.

"Olivia," I interrupted and he chose to ignore me.

"You didn't check to see if the package was hot?"

"Oh come on man! Here's a thing on the list of Dumbest Things to Do: blame the fourteen year old girl, who's kinda scared out of her mind, for not knowing something that she couldn't have in the first place!"

"Surely it must have given you some sign."

You mean the smoke that I chose to ignore? Psh, nah.

"Nope, not a thing. So why can't you accept that it's not my f- OW!"

"Sorry sorry!" He exclaimed as he quickly wrapped my hand in a bandage after putting this stuff that stung on it. "Did that hurt?"

"No, I'm just saying ow for the fun of it. Of course it hurt, ya jerk! Damn, you make a horrible doctor!"

Even though I was yelling at him, I could see a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"It's not funny!"

Of course, that just made him chuckle and despite everything, I did too.

"I'm laughing," I said. "But I'm starting to get pissed."

I pulled my hand off the table and held it close to my face so I could examine it. I really, really hate bandages and I was so relieved when I finally took the one off my side. That wound has recently become nothing more than a funny looking pink line (yay for fast healing!).

"It should be fine in a couple of days," Henry said, suddenly serious. Again.

"And you're sure of this how?" I asked skeptically... Don't judge, it's not illegal to ask questions.

"I've seen much worse."

Right. Once more, I've taken a conversation and made it awkward. I guess some things never change when you back in time 100+ years. Back home, I'm known as Conversation Killer by Dean (and he's known as Assbutt by me). Call me crazy, but it's a title I'm kinda proud of.

"So 'S' sent me this letter, saying that I'm here for an important reason, but that I'll have to figure out what it is on my own. If I can't, then I'm basically stuck here in the past. Well, the past for me, present for you."

"Do you have any notion who this 'S' is?"

"Sam? Sarah? No clue. You're guess is as good as mine."

He seemed to consider this for a moment, but then said,

"Why don't you check to see if you've received a reply?"

"They said it might take a while."

"Would it hurt to look?"

I couldn't argue with him there. Mumbling irritably to myself, I stood up and headed back upstairs toward my room. I nearly got lost on the way, even though I've been here long enough that I should know my way around. But hey, it's not my fault I was born directionally challenged and have walked into a wall... More than once.

I reached my room and opened the door.

And I screamed.

Bloody murder.

* * *

**Cliffhanger! So how was it? Good? Bad? Funny? Lol I'm such a spaz. Anyways, I hope you liked it. Please review!**

**-Nopride**


	7. Red Sky at Morning

**Hey guys! Okay, so I was at a store the other day and I saw a guy who looked EXACTLY like Kurt Cobain! (For those of you who don't know who that is, he was the lead singer of Nirvana) When I turned around to do a double take, he'd disappeared down some aisle. Now I know that it's impossible for it to have really been him, but it was still really cool!**

**Anyways, you probably don't want to hear about my crazy dead musician look alike encounter, so here's the next update! **

**Alexis: Hahaha very nice Olivia impression :) She could learn to control her profanity... Meh, it's what makes her funny in my opinion lol. I got the next chapter for ya!**

**Guest: Cliffhangers are very bad for the soul indeed! You need not wait anymore lol**

**Crazyblonde13: Ok, are we like long lost sisters? We both have arachnophobia and we're both directionally challenged! Lol thanks for reviewing and here's the next update.**

**RainbowSenpai: Thank you! *bows* Hope you like this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: See previous blah blah blah**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_I reached my room and opened the door._

_And I screamed._

_Bloody murder._

* * *

Now

Okay, this is not normal, not one bit! I feel like I'm either crazy or sleep deprived; probably both considering I have acute insomnia. But I've never had anything like this happen! Am I freaking nuts?

Because for a split second, it seemed like there was a really freaky looking monster in my room. Then it poofed into dust and disappeared through the window. But before that, it'd looked like someone had whacked it with an ugly stick. The face was a twisted form of a grin and the eyes were a weird red-ish black color. Its teeth looked like they'd been stuck inside a pencil sharpener and they were all yellow and gross.

Maybe I shouldn't have read that Stephen King book a few months back...

"Miss Armstrong?!" Henry yelled and I thought his voice sounded far away, like he was downstairs. But when I turned around, he was right behind me, almost as if he'd blended in with the shadows on the wall and they'd moved him. "Are you alright?"

His arms were half extended toward me (probably because he thought I would faint like I've been doing a lot lately) and in one hand, he held a lethal looking kitchen knife, whose silver lade glinted in the morning sun. He had what I call the "superhero look" in his eyes and despite being scared, I was actually quite flattered.

But scared outweighed everything else, including my ability to be calm, cool, and collected.

"Dude!" I yelled and frantically pointed to where the monster had been, whilst jumping up and down. "There was a monster standing _right there_! Then poof! It disappeared!"

Henry frowned, brown eyes darkening considerably and entered the room. He looked around with the knife held high and I just backed into the wall to get as far away from him as possible.

As much as I am pro 'nut up or shut up,' there's no way I'm gonna go into a room to fight something I can't even see.

"Miss Armstrong," Henry said without looking at me. "Run as fast as you can outside and around to the stables. Lock the door and grab whatever weapons you can wield. Understood?"

"Wait, what?" I asked incredulously. "You want me to go outside _by myself_? You're insane if you think I'm going to do that! Is this a burglary? How did that thing just vanish?"

"Miss Armstrong!" He said sharply and I immediately shut up. "Do as I said. You'll be safe there."

I definitely had more to say, but after taking one look at his face, I decided to agree. When I was in school, I was an extremely fast track and field runner, so I could definitely use that to my advantage. I ran down the stairs and out the door, crying out when the sun hit my eyes. I wasted no time in running to the stables and locking the door as I was told to do.

Then there was simply dead silence.

Well, dead silence except for my frantic breathing that sounds like an asthma attack.

I sank to my knees and tried to catch my breath in case I would have to run again. Once I was sure I wasn't going to pass out, I shakily rose to my feet and promptly smacked my head on one of the low support beams that extended from the wall.

"Ow!" I hissed as I stumbled foward, making sure to _duck_ this time, and leaned against a small table. "Friggin' 1800s architecture!"

I went to kick the beam for most likely bruising my skull, but stopped short when I saw what it was connected to.

Weapons, ranging from guns, to bows and arrows, to blades decorated the wall in front of me. I mean, I know that it's normal to have a few guns and whatnot in the 19th century, but Henry looks like he has enough in stock for an entire army.

Crap.

Then I remembered that I was supposed to grab whatever I could to defend myself with and lo and behold! I've got an entire arsenal at my disposal!

I quickly grabbed one of the many what would be antique pistols in my time and checked to make sure that it was loaded. When I was sure it was, I pulled the next thing I felt into my hands without even looking to see what it was.

A loud bang sounded against the door and I nearly shrieked, but thankfully remained quiet instead. I pressed myself against the wall that would put me out of the direct eyesight of someone standing in the door. Not two seconds later, I heard the thin locks snap and my only barrier disappeared. I grasped the gun tightly in my left, blistered, hand and bit back a cry of pain. I heard heavy footsteps make their way down the short hall that led to the table that I'd leaned against.

Ten more seconds and I would be discovered.

But of course, because luck is never on my side, it was more like zero seconds.

And I was left facing my worst nightmare.

He was tall, well over six feet, and had a strong build. His face was twisted into a sneer that not even someone who was desperate would go for. He wore all black, like most of the people in this time period, except for a crisp white shirt that looked difficult to move in. When he spoke, his voice was bland and had a touch of bitterness mixed into it.

"You're the girl Vadoma has been complaining to us about incessantly?" Vadoma? Oh jeeze. What have I gotten myself mixed into now? "I was expecting you to at least be worth looking at."

Ouch.

I managed to not launch into a tirade about my looks and instead held the gun up.

"Stay back!" I yelled and then noticed that it was pointing the wrong way. I flipped it around before continuing my threat. "I'm not afraid and totally know how to use this!"

The man just raised an eyebrow.

"Do you now?"

I looked at it and realized that I hadn't even prepped it for firing. The little hammer thing still needs to go back.

"Damn right I do!" I said and pulled on the hammer with my thumb.

And, of course, of freaking _course_, it got stuck.

It is just not my day.

"Just gotta pull this thingy here and put this thing... Here and..."

I held the gun in both hands and pulled with everything I had, but nothing happened. The creepy guy looked like he was enjoying watching me fail and hey, if it buys me time, then I don't give a rat's ass.

"You know what?" I finally yelled and threw it to the ground. "Screw it!"

I'm sure you saw this coming, but it hit the wall, _unjammed itself_, and fired into one of the empty horse stalls.

Wow.

My second weapon turned out to be another pistol, but it was unloaded and absolutely useless.

Again. Wow.

"I'm tired of this little game," The man said and took two steps closer. "Vadoma wishes to speak with you herself but... She never said you were to remain unharmed."

I backed into the table, bashing my leg into the corner and causing several weapons to fall from above. Thankfully, they missed me (well the blades and arrows did anyway. Can't say the same for the guns and bows), but that did nothing to stop the creepy guy's pursuit.

"Wait wait wait!" I shouted and threw my hands up. "Vadoma probably drives you crazy too! Maybe we could team up and you could, ya know, not hurt me!"

Before he could even consider my bogus offer, a hand fisted in his collar and threw him against the broken door. While I remained where I was completely stunned, Henry stood in front of me, defensive stance conveying 'I am so going to kick your ass.'

The creepy guy got to his feet and in an instant, he and Henry were fighting like there was no tomorrow (which, in my case, there might not be). It was definitely not an even fight; Creeper outweighed Henry by at least thirty pounds and was like five inches taller.

Crap.

While I anxiously watched my superhero get the living you know what beat out of him, light glinted off a metal object in the far right corner of the room. I turned that way and saw something that definitely had not been there five minutes ago.

My silver Katana sword that Dean got me so we could train for our skit in history class was now sitting ten feet away from me. Of course, we used fake ones during the actual performance, but he got me a vintage one as a joke.

And now, it just might be a life saver.

I looked over at Henry to find that he was losing the fight badly; I wouldn't have the time to run all the way to the other side of the room and run back. Immediately after I realized this, I felt something hit my foot and when I looked down, my blade was easily within my reach.

'_You're welcome._

_-S_'

I grabbed the weapon after reading the brief note on the handle and raced foward to where the man was standing up just after kicking Henry against the wall. He regarded my raised sword with shock for a split second before it morphed into rage. He lunged just as I stabbed foward.

I don't know whose scream was louder.

* * *

**Well well well, Olivia is quite the warrior when it really boils down to it! But she totally fails with guns lol. **

**Hope you liked this chapter :) Stay tuned for more and please review!**

**-Nopride**


	8. You Can't Handle the Truth

**Hey everyone! Sorry it took a little while to update, my computer was acting a little funky. Anyways, this is sort of an "aftermath calm down" chapter, but it's a chapter nonetheless! :) **

**Disclaimer: Ugh. Do I really have to say it again? See previous**

**Crazyblonde13: Well thank goodness you didn't drown! Glad to see that you're okay. Hope you had fun on your vacation :)**

**Alexis: Why thank you *bows* And you are quite welcome :) Hope you like this update**

**RTVampireKilljoy: Haha thanks! I hope you like the chapter. Btw, is your username a reference to My Chemical Romance? Just curious.**

**Boyishanimeweirdofreak: Awww thank you for your awesome review! If you can, please tell me what I can do to make Olivia less Mary Sue-ish. Feed back is incredibly useful to me :)**

**Passing Shadow: Lol thanks. I'm pretty sure that I would prefer a Katana or bow given the situation as well. I actually really dislike guns. Too much damage can be caused too easily. Ps: love your username! **

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_I grabbed the weapon after reading the brief note on the handle and raced foward to where the man was standing up just after kicking Henry against the wall. He regarded my raised sword with shock for a split second before it morphed into rage. He lunged just as I stabbed foward._

_I don't know whose scream was louder. _

* * *

'_You want answers?'_

_'I think I'm entitled to.'_

_'You want answers?'_

_'I want the truth!'_

_'YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH!'_

_-A Few Good Men_

* * *

Now

The body collapsed to the floor and I stared at both it and the bloody sword. My hands shook uncontrollably and if I didn't have such a tight grip on the blade, it would've fallen by now. In the movies, you always see the heroine who was unfortunate enough to have to kill the bad guy say some snarky comment and walk away. Sorry to disappoint, but that's not how it works in real life. No, in reality, the heroine (who just so happens to have turned out to be me) just stands there, trying not to throw up, scream, or do both at the same time.

My mind barely noticed that Henry was slowly getting to his feet and walking toward me. His hands were raised in an obvious 'I'm a friend so don't cut my head off' gesture that I didn't even acknowledge beyond the point of 'non lethal.'

"Miss Armstrong?" He said in an overly calm voice. "Put the sword down."

The words wouldn't register themselves in my mind. The only ones that would were _'I killed something. Holy crap, I just killed something!'_

"Miss Armstrong?... I'm not going to hurt you... And neither is he. He's dead."

_'He's dead.'_

Somehow, that managed to snap some sanity back into me. I raised my eyes to meet Henry's and he took another step toward me, hands still raised. I could feel that my face was frozen in a mask of shock and I can only imagine what it must've looked like. My grip on the Katana slackened a little and he regarded this with slight relief.

"Miss Armstrong," he said again. "Olivia... Please put the sword down."

It was the use of my name and not the stupidly formal 'Miss Armstrong' that caused me to let go of the blade completely. It clattered to the floor with a metallic sound, miraculously missing my feet. Henry kicked it away (most likely because he was afraid I would try to kill him in the next few seconds if I could) while I continued to stare off into space.

_I killed something._

_The... Thing... Or whatever it was, is dead. _

_Dead._

_And it's all my fault. _

"Are you hurt?"

Was I? I hadn't even thought to look and find out. Everything seemed fine, no broken bones, no stab wounds. The only things that I could say hurt were the burn on my hand and the sudden pounding in my head. But other than that I was fine, physically speaking that is.

Mentally? Eh. Not so sure about that.

I didn't even hear myself say no, but I must've because Henry nodded and gently grabbed my arm.

"We need to g-"

He didn't even have the time to finish his sentence before I threw my arms around him and sobbed uncontrollably into his shoulder.

Again. In the movies, the closed off, yet incredibly hot guy would show a spark of emotion and comfort the frightened girl. But again, this is real life. And in real life, I can assure you that the closed off hot guy does _not_ comfort the girl. No, what happens is actually quite the opposite. Instead, he pries her off of him while saying 'we need to get out of here.'

After doing the above action, Henry towed me to the house and gave me a bag.

"Get your stuff," he said sharply. "We're leaving in ten minutes. Whatever's not packed will be left here and probably never seen again."

He disappeared down the hall and I climbed the stairs to my room in a daze. I pulled the candy from the hiding places and packed all the other things that had also been sent in the box. When I went to grab my guitar and amp, I found a note sitting where I last left them.

_'We'll get these to you ASAP. They won't look normal out in public. Take care._

_-S_

_Ps: You had to kill it.'_

I folded the paper and put it in my pocket, slinging my bag over my shoulder at the same time. When I walked back into the living room, I found Henry already there and obviously waiting for me. I didn't even bother to look up at him, only stopped a few feet away and quietly asked,

"Where are we going?"

I saw him look at me apologetically out of the corner of my eye, but I still didn't raise my head.

"I don't believe it is safe here. I'll leave you with Speed in town until I can make arrangements to stay some place more secure."

I snapped my head up and glared at him. He seemed shocked for a second and actually took a step back before steadying himself and giving a glare of his own. For a moment, it was a battle of wills between the two of us until I finally spoke.

"So you're just gonna ditch me with some shop keeper I barely know?" I was beyond mad... I was livid. "Unbelievable!"

"Miss Armstrong, Speed is completely capable of protecting you until I return," I could see that he was angry now too. "And I'm not, as you said, 'ditching' you."

"Return from where? And what was that thing? It looked like an ordinary human but in the room upstairs, it was all monsterish!"

He ran a hand through his hair and sighed heavily. This was a conversation he'd obviously been wanting to avoid for some time.

Well tough. I want answers.

"I'll tell you everything when the time is right, but not now. No, we need to leave immediately. You'll have to change clothes again. The townspeople won't appreciate the way you're dressed now. There should be some apparel in the wardrobe in your room. I suggest you hurry."

Instead of having me argue like I wanted to, my brain decided to see logic and before I knew it, I was marching back up the stairs. I shut the door and quickly found a different dress and matching bonnet than i'd worn last time. I put it on over my normal clothes, not wanting the scratchy material to murder my skin and tied the bonnet over my head. I checked the mirror to make sure that I didn't look like a complete idiot and saw that all was good. Sure, I looked like a startled deer in the middle of a country road but other than that and a few specs of blood on my cheek, I was fine.

I walked back to the living room and Henry motioned for me to follow him. When we stepped outside, I saw that there were horses saddled and waiting for us... But no wagon.

"Go grab your sword from the stables," Henry said as he held the reins of both the animals.

I raced through the barn doors and hunted along the floor until my eyes fell upon the Katana. I grabbed it and looked around some more in case S had decided to send the case with it. My search paid off when I found the black container and put my blade into it. Now I wouldn't accidentally impale myself or Henry with it on the way to town.

Speaking of said Jerk, he had just finished adjusting the stirrups on what I assumed to be my horse because the straps were way higher than the one next to it. I bit my lip as I stared up at the animal, uncertainty beginning to build within me. Apparently, the ranch that I used to take lessons at failed to mention that I was riding ponies. So theoretically, I have never been on a horse in my life.

Great.

I've seen people get on them from the ground in those old Clint Eastwood westerns, but I never thought that i'd have to. They always had a nice and convenient stool at my ranch so the less experienced riders, like myself, would not go sprawling on the ground.

"Miss Armstrong?" Henry asked and I jumped when I saw him right beside me. Seriously, how the hell does he do that? "Do you need any help?"

Yes.

"No no," I said, pride outweighing sense. "I got it. Just... You might wanna back up. I'm notorious for kicking people in the face."

He smiled a little and stepped well out of range of my foot should it decide to make an attack toward his head. I barely managed to lift my leg high enough to put my shoe through the stirrup and had to hop around to do so. I heard Henry chuckle but surprisingly managed to ignore him. I counted to three and pushed myself off the ground, landing dead center in the saddle.

Well what do ya know? That was actually kind of graceful.

I smiled down at Henry and it took all I had to not say, 'take that.' He smirked back at me (of course, it was totally beneath him to actually grin) and jumped on his horse a lot swifter than I had.

"Show off," I muttered under my breath and he raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.

I tied my bag to the back of the saddle along with the Katana and we began to head toward town.

And that's when it suddenly hit me, the realization that had been at the back of my mind ever since the man had attacked me.

I can die here.

* * *

**Yeah, I know it's a little short but like I said, it's more of 'take a breather' chapter. Don't worry, there will be plenty of action coming up soon :)**

**-Nopride**


	9. Wanted Dead or Alive

**Hello everyone :) Welcome back! This story now has nine chapters as of this update, which officially makes it the longest one I've written. Yay! Big thanks to all of you that have reviewed it! Wouldn't have been able to make it past chapter three without you guys! **

**So I'm going to stop blabbing right now and get on with the fic.**

** Disclaimer: I do not own this movie/book blah blah blah **

**Alexis: I'm glad that you like it and you're very welcome :) Hahaha here ya go. **

**Crazyblonde13: Yeah it just got pretty real for Miss Armstrong. *sighs* poor girl. Oh well, she gets to kick butt and it's not like Henry can't fight ;) **

**Edowen: Ah a new reviewer. Welcome to the fic my friend :) Thank you so much. Hope you like this chapter. Ginebra: Thank you :)**

**Nativegurl13: Another new reviewer yay! Welcome welcome! Thanks for your awesome review. Here's the next chapter for ya. **

**RTVampireKilljoy: Thank you very much. Hope you like this update. **

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil… _

_I tied my bag to the back of the saddle along with the Katana and we began to head toward town. _

_And that's when it suddenly hit me, the realization that had been at the back of my mind ever since the man had attacked me. _

_I can die here._

* * *

The sun was just beginning to set when we finally entered town. The reason it had taken so long was because about half way there, my horse had decided that it didn't like me anymore. I managed to bail before it could throw me off (surprisingly, I didn't land flat on my face or butt) and Henry was able to grab ahold of the reins before it could run away. In the end, he switched all of my stuff on to his horse and we sent the other one back to the house. I was briefly worried that it would get lost or stuck in a thorn bush but I just told myself I was being silly.

So we continued the trip to town on one horse. Naturally, I was permanently scarred and that's why I was clinging to Henry the rest of the way, despite his many attempts to get me to let go.

"Miss Armstrong," He said as he stopped the stupid animal in front of the general store.

"If you're going to say 'let go,' then the answer is no way compadre," I hissed and he rolled his eyes.

Before we could continue to argue, Speed walked through the shop's door and leaned against the hitching post. He raised his eyebrows at us and I immediately folded my arms against my chest, thus allowing Henry to jump to the ground. Speed moved out of the way so he could tie the reins and keep the horse from going anywhere.

"Pleasure to see you again, Miss Armstrong," The shopkeeper said and I grinned.

"What's up man... I mean hi."

He tilted his head for a brief moment but then smiled up at me.

"You can get off the horse now."

I looked over to where Henry was now finished with the whole hitching process and standing with a huge smirk on his face. I scowled at him and then down at the ground which suddenly seemed two thousand light years away.

"You know, I think I like the view from up here just a tad more than down there," I called to them.

"Honestly Miss Armstrong," Speed laughed and spread his arms. "Jump."

"You're both what, five foot ten? Eleven? It may sound easy to you guys, but I'm only five foot freaking two!"

I could tell that Henry was starting to get impatient... Well judging by the way he was constantly rolling his eyes and whatnot.

"Miss Armstrong," He said. "I need to be on my way. Now stop being such a child and dismount!"

Jeeze. Love ya too dude.

I don't think that I've mentioned this, but I have this insane fear of heights that's only gotten worse over the years. I don't care if I'm ten meters in the air or three hundred; when I look down and my feet aren't touching or close to touching the floor, I'm not moving.

Biting my lip near to the point of drawing blood, I swung my legs until all I had to do to get down was push. I looked at the ground again and took a few deep breaths for good measure before letting go of the saddle. All in all, the jump wasn't too bad; my feet didn't get caught in the stirrup and the horse didn't try to murder me. I actually landed upright and not sprawled on my side like when I did the emergency dismount.

I grinned at the two men who were staring at me, thoroughly impressed and at least a little surprised. Henry was the first to recover and shook his head to clear it. Wow, have I really been acting that helpless since I got here? Well, looks like this is the time for redemption.

Speed walked around the back of the horse and retrieved my bag and Katana from the saddle. He looked at the sword and then at Henry, who motioned his head toward me. The shopkeeper gaped while I shrugged my shoulders and walked into the store somewhat awkwardly.

I didn't go far enough to be out of earshot of them, only enough to look like I was. I wasn't able to catch all of their conversation, but I heard bits and pieces. Words like 'attack,' 'fight,' 'sword,' and 'hysterical' were used and I assumed that Henry was briefing Speed on why he was suddenly dumping me with him.

As carefully as I could, I moved closer to the door in an attempt to hear more of what they had to say.

"I'm trusting that you'll be able to look after her."

"You have my word that she'll be alright."

"Very well."

"Henry, why are they so interested? Yes, she did insult Vadoma, but it's hardly like her to take such drastic measures for something so minute."

"I can't say for sure, but I do know that some sort of immense power sent Miss Armstrong here."

"But there's no way they could know that."

"Perhaps. I'll talk with Abraham. He might know more about what they're planning."

I watched Henry get back on the horse as Speed slowly backed away. He nearly discovered that I was eavesdropping, but I ducked behind the counter before he could see me. The last thing that I heard Henry say shocked me almost as much as the freaky monster thing.

"If anything happens to her, I'll kill you."

* * *

Fifteen minutes saw me sitting on the counter and tapping my feet against it to a Pink Floyd song while Speed cleaned the store. We hadn't really talked after he walked into the shop and caught me completely red handed. I'd tried to make up some lame excuse about wanting to tie my shoelaces but he saw right through it. So judging by this, it appears that I can cross off spy from my list of future jobs.

"So um," I stammered, not able to take the silence any longer. "Did Henry say when he would be back?"

"I don't know for sure," Speed said as he swept the floor. "A day or two is a decent estimate."

"Where's he going anyway?"

"I believe to the White House to consult with the President."

"Consult with him about what?"

He sighed and put the broom down, brushing his almost ridiculously long blonde hair out of his face at the same time.

"Miss Armstrong," he said tiredly.

"Olivia."

"Olivia... Vadoma is one of the most powerful women in the South. She and her brother are apart of an empire made up of mostly vam-... of very wealthy people. They control almost all of the slave trade."

"So you guys are all afraid of them just because they have money and power?" Good God, it's like 2012 all over again. I guess things don't change when you go more than one hundred and fifty years into the past.

"It's more than that. We are fighting a war and unless we stop the trade, the North is going to lose."

"So stop it! Is it that hard to blockade something? Constrict them! Cut them off from their suppliers."

"We've been trying that, but they win the battles."

"Think differently then! I don't call those battles, I call them planned massacres because they just stand and take turns shooting and stabbing each other! 'Hey I've got an idea! I'll shoot at you and then you shoot at me with absolutely no cover for either of us! Won't that be fun?' Dude, do you know how _stupid_ that is?"

He seemed astounded for a moment, but then offered a small smile.

"You are the most outspoken young girl I have ever met," He said and sat down on one of the barrels across from me.

"I'll take that as a compliment Speed," I said as I fished into my bag for a Jolly Rancher. I pulled out two and held one out to him. "Want some?"

"Depends on what it is."

"It's candy. But don't chew it unless you want to break a tooth."

"I don't think so, but thank you."

I shrugged in a 'suit yourself' gesture and stared out the windows at the darkening sky. The door was already shut and the shop closed for the day. Everything's so different in this time period; people actually trust each other to a certain extent. Of course, that doesn't mean there aren't locks on every door, but still.

"Miss A-... Olivia!" Speed said loudly and I jumped, suddenly realizing that he must've called my name at least three times.

"Huh? Oh sorry, what do ya want?"

"I was saying that sleeping arrangements need to be thought about. There's only one bed upstairs..."

"Take it," I said as I looked down awkwardly.

"It wouldn't be right for a young lady to have to sleep on the floor."

"I really don't care man. It's not a problem."

"I insist that..."

"Dude," I said sharply. "We both know how this argument is going to end. Just let it go."

He looked uncertain but nodded anyway. I smiled and hopped off the counter, knowing that sleeping in the shop was going to be awesome. When I used to go camping with my family, we never brought anything except a compass, survival knives, a first aid kit, and lighters. My dad took a few wilderness survival courses when he was in college and he taught us everything once we were old enough. I always said that we could just watch Man vs. Wild on TV and learn that way, but of course, Daddy didn't like my idea. So sleeping on the ground of a store is nothing compared to the rocky terrain of the Sierras.

Speed wished me a good night and went upstairs to bed. I waited until he shut the door to start putting together a bed. Toward the back of the building were several sacks filled with flour and animal feed that would have to suffice. I dragged several of them behind the counter and out of view of the windows (yeah, like I would be able to sleep in plain sight of random and somewhat creepy people). I found some empty bags that would serve as parts of a blanket and lay down under them.

As much as I expected it to elude me, sleep actually arrived pretty quickly and I was pulled under almost as soon as my head hit the ground.

* * *

"Those wretched... How dare they!" Vadoma hissed angrily as she knelt by the decomposing body of the vampire she'd sent to grab the girl.

The cause of death was obvious, the stab wound standing out against the pallid color of the body. Once again, she cursed Olivia Armstrong to the fiery pits of Hell and slowly got to her feet.

They want a war? Fine.

Be careful what you wish for.

* * *

**Don't worry people; there's plenty of action to come in the next chapter :) Stay tuned!**

**-Nopride**


	10. All Hell Breaks Loose

**Hello friends! Sorry for the delay, my dinosaur of a computer was acting up again. Anyways, thanks again for all the reviews! I believe it's at forty two now, which is absolutely incredible! **

**Alexis: Haha yeah Henry can be a bit hard to love... But isn't that why he's lovable? As promised, there shall be a massive fight in this chapter! But between who I will not say...**

**Crazyblonde13: Jolly Ranchers can be very dangerous candies. I think anyone who likes them is bound to have a bad experience with their teeth as well... Haha yes, when you get off a horse the ground does seem far away. **

**Edowen: Thanks! Here's the next chapter for ya!**

**Guest: I think your review got cut off a little. But I can give a broad answer. Olivia's going to meet... People lol ;) **

**Guest #2 (AKA: Supernatural Fan): Supernatural is my all time favorite Tv show! I'm glad that you saw my references lol. Anyways, thanks so much for your review! I hope you like this update. **

**Disclaimer: See previous chapters.**

**And without further ado, I give you the next chapter to this fic!**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

"Those wretched... How dare they!" Vadoma hissed angrily as she knelt by the decomposing body of the vampire she'd sent to grab the girl.

The cause of death was obvious, the stab wound standing out against the pallid color of the body. Once again, she cursed Olivia Armstrong to the fiery pits of Hell and slowly got to her feet.

They want a war? Fine.

Be careful what you wish for.

* * *

_Washington DC: 12:00 AM_

"You're sure it was one of them?" Lincoln said after intently listening to his friend's story.

"Yes. It was Alexander, one of Vadoma's most trusted men."

"And Miss Armstrong killed him?"

The vampire hunting President seemed to have trouble believing that part of the tale and Henry had to admit that it did sound far fetched. After all, the girl hardly seemed capable of scolding a child, much less slaying a monster. But then again, she was completely different in all other aspects as well. While most women they were accustomed to were reserved and soft spoken, the young Miss Armstrong was loud, rude, and opinionated. It was certainly not the personality most suitable for this society.

Yet that was something Henry couldn't help but admire.

"Stabbed him with a sword," He said after a while. "It seems as though she's trained with that weapon before."

Abe nodded and asked the most predicted question.

"Is she alright?"

"She's fine. A little hysterical but that's to be expected. I've left her with Speed for now."

"So you think she should stay here?"

"Why not? It's the most heavily guarded place in the country."

Lincoln chuckled and agreed with a tired smile that indeed it was. Henry offered a small grin as well, knowing that his old friend (well, young by his standards) was going to authorize his and Miss Armstrong's stay. He could read the President like a book... And everyone else for that matter.

"I certainly think it's in our best interest for the two of you to reside here until we can figure out the next move. It also wouldn't hurt for Miss Armstrong to bring her blade, considering it's the only way she can defend herself should the need arise."

Henry nodded and called a hasty 'thank you' over his shoulder as he made his way toward his horse, a sudden feeling of unease settling over him.

_The only way she can defend herself..._

She can't even do humanity's most prominent instinct correctly. The vampire she'd killed had more so walked into the blade than he'd actually gotten stabbed and even that was pushing it. And now she was with a shopkeeper who had no knowledge of the creatures of the night other than the fact they existed?

Good Lord, she was probably as good as dead.

* * *

_"Hey. Hey. Hey! Yo Armstrong! Wake up, ya clutz!"_

I groaned and mumbled something incoherent before rolling over and trying to go back to sleep. Something shook my shoulder and I swatted at it angrily as my temper began to soar. If I'm woken up too early in the morning, I get even more cranky than usual. It typically doesn't escalate to the point of hitting, but I do tend to insult people a lot more.

_"You're still asleep aren't you? Get your butt out of bed! We gotta catch the flight to Lollapalooza! Come on, Olive Oil!"_

Olive Oil... There's only one person I know that would use that nickname for me, but it's absolutely impossible for him to be here.

"Jimmy?" I asked groggily as I opened my eyes and sat up.

But instead of seeing my dead best friend, I saw Speed's kind face looking down at me worriedly.

"Are you alright?" He asked, one hand gently resting on my shoulder. "Who's Jimmy?"

Normally I would've moved away whilst saying something along the lines of 'get your hand off me, ya ped.' But it felt as though something was holding on to my heart and trying to physically pull it from my chest. So as far as witty comments go, I got nothing.

"Um yeah I'm fine," I said and leaned against the counter. "Guess I was dreaming... He was a good friend of mine... My best friend actually. Just missing him is all."

I slowly got to my feet, shrugging Speed's hand off in the process. He flinched back, unsure of what to do and I took the opportunity to look around. Judging by the low amount of light that streamed in through the windows, it was about six in the morning. Aka: way too early for me to actually be awake.

"Dude," I muttered with a yawn. "Why the hell did you wake me up so friggin early? In case you haven't noticed, I kinda live for sleep."

He folded his arms across his chest and shifted his weight to his left leg. The corners of his mouth twitched like he was fighting a smile and losing the battle.

"The day _starts_ early, Olivia," He said lightly as he tossed me a broom which, thanks to my morning lack of coordination, smacked me in the shin.

"Well what do ya want me to do with this?" I asked as I picked it up off the floor and he raised his eyebrows.

"That is a broom and it is, for some odd reason, used for sweeping."

"I get that, smart ass. I meant where."

"You can start over by the back shelves. Work your way to the front and come see me when you're done."

I shuffled to the back of the shop and absently began to clean the floor (in other words, I just moved the dust around so it looked different than before). Speed straightened the items on the counter and shelves after I insisted that he stop watching me like a creeper.

When I passed by a mirror, I quietly groaned to myself as I took in my horrid appearance. My hair was a snarled, angry mess that looked like a heaping mass of spaghetti noodles and my eyes were incredibly dull. Not only that, but I'd forgotten to take off the dress before going to bed and as a result, my skin was scratched and red. I frowned, suddenly remembering how important delicate, flawless skin was in the 1800s for women; unless they worked in the mills that is. A glance down at my hands revealed multiple guitar callouses and the still healing blister that looked disgusting.

Nope, I'm definitely not an 1800s gal.

Well, I wasn't much of a 2012 person either. 1970s anyone?

But still, I didn't want to be entirely useless to poor Speed, so I finished up with the job and casually leaned against the shelf.

"Okay I'm done. What next?"

"Why don't you go take a look around the town?"

"Gee at six in the morning? When it's barely light outside? I don't know, sounds sketchy to me..."

"Oh please. Isn't that what you women do?"

"Have you ever been with a woman that wasn't your mom or your sister?" I hissed, angry at the stereotype.

Before he could respond, I turned on my heel and walked into the early morning light. A cold breeze hit my body and I shivered, mentally cursing myself for not grabbing a coat on my way out. I folded my arms against my chest in attempt to stay at least a little warm, but only partially succeeded. If my nose doesn't freeze and fall off like Michael Jackson's, it'll be a miracle.

The streets were absolutely deserted, other than the odd drunk man stumbling along to his house. I tried to keep my head down and avoid all eye contact with the few people who were just opening up their shops. The last thing I needed was to get caught up in a conversation with one of them and run my motormouth. Not only would that most likely create an awkward situation, it would definitely be disastrous.

As I rounded a corner, a high pitched yet somewhat quiet sound reached my ears. Frowning, I turned to the right a little and tilted my head to see if I could hear it again. Sure enough, it repeated itself and I immediately deduced that my imagination was not acting up... Again. I took a few steps down the lonely, desolate, and cracked street until I was faced with an intersection. One road was even more poorly lit than the one I was already on and naturally, it was the one where the sound was coming from.

To bring up my classic horror movie comparisons again, you always see the heroine wander down the creepy path with no weapon whatsoever. If you're anything like me, you start to yell something like 'you idiot! Get the gun the other guy dropped! Something's going to grab you!' at the television. If you've ever wondered whether or not there's a legitimate reason for basically committing suicide by stupidity, then I can tell you first hand that yes, there is one.

Curiosity really does get the best of you.

So that's why I suddenly found myself wandering down that dark street, deprived of any defense mechanisms besides my one day's worth of school karate training. The sound transformed from a faint, high noise to a loud, keen wail as I got closer to the end of the sidewalk. This caused me to break into a near sprint and I raced to the last of the good light...

And I stopped dead.

Partially secluded behind a run down building, a man who seemed to be in his mid forties held a terrified young girl to the battered brick wall in front of him. There's no way she could've been more than eight or nine years old and her face was a mask of sheer panic.

"S'm body help m'!" She exclaimed through a swollen and split lip. "I wan' m' papa!"

There's no way in hell that I would just walk away from the scene before me like it wasn't even there. It's because of people like this man that I have a hard time trusting anyone in general. So I ignored all of the apprehension that was building up inside of me and yelled at the top of my lungs,

"Hey! You take your damn hands off of her!"

Of course, that went over like a ton of bricks.

The blonde man let go of the kid and she collapsed to the ground in a crumpled heap, brown curly hair concealing her face. I briefly looked down at her before turning my attention back to who was now my opponent.

"You're out of your place here, miss," he said with a sarcastic snarl. "I suggest you move along before you get hurt."

"How about you move along before I wake up every person in this town and let them know what you did to her," I said and motioned my head toward the girl, who had positioned herself behind my legs.

Instead of flinching at my threat like I'd hoped he would, the man simply chuckled and took a few steps closer to me.

"Such strong words for a girl... Although, I guess it's understandable, considering you don't look like one very much."

Again with the hair thing.

Now because of my complete inability to let the sleeping dogs lie, I'm in an even worse situation than I was two minutes ago.

But I wasn't about to let a little kid die as well.

"Run!" I shouted to her. "Get home and stay there!"

The girl took off down the street as fast as she could (which was pretty slow by my standards, but it's not like she would be chased) and I breathed a sigh of relief. In an instant, the man shoved me backward into the pavement. I landed on my butt and quickly got to my feet, eyes widening considerably.

"I guess you'll have to suffice," he said as he advanced toward me.

And then all hell broke loose.

I was only able to watch in a horrified stupor as his face morphed from normal to demonic. Dark blue veins creeped up to his eyes, which turned from an electric blue to a bright bloody red. His upper lip curled away from his teeth, revealing two sharp... Fangs.

Oh crap.

I may not be a Twilight fan, but I've seen enough of TVD and Supernatural to know what I'm dealing with. Never in my life would I have dreamed that those monsters are actually real.

Vampires.

I backed into the wall until I couldn't anymore and the monster laughed, the sound horribly terrifying in the early morning air. I found myself wishing desperately for my Katana that I stupidly left in the store. Hell, I would even take that damn pistol that jammed back at Henry's! Anything that I could use to protect myself.

With a startled yell, I ducked as the vamp swung a fist toward my head. How I saw it, I have no idea, for it was moving practically at the speed of light. The second time though, I wasn't as lucky. His left hand caught me in the stomach and I doubled over with the wind knocked out of me. I coughed and tried to breathe in air so I could at least have somewhat of a fighting chance... Or so I could scream at the top of my lungs and hope someone comes to my rescue.

_Is there anybody out there?_

I was unable to stop him from slapping me across the face, causing the skin to split open near my left eye. I desperately looked around for something I could use as a weapon and suddenly noticed an oil lantern lying just within my reach. There was no time for deliberation; I grabbed the light, yanked it from the wall, and slammed it against the monster's head.

The glass case shattered and spilled hot oil over the vamp's face. Not a second later, the flame ignited the fuel, much like what happens in that video game Red Dead Redemption when you shoot a lantern. He screamed and frantically swatted at the fire in an attempt to put it out. I took the opportunity to run and sprinted down the road toward a more populated area.

From what I've seen in Supernatural, fire is enough to temporarily incapacitate a vampire, but not kill them unless they were completely enveloped in it. Sure enough, when I looked over my shoulder, the man was gone with only a few wisps of smoke left to say he'd been there. I didn't stop running, despite the ache in my lungs. I don't know about anyone else, but I for one do not want to become some blood sucking creature's breakfast. I prefer to live, thank you very much.

I rounded a corner and leaned against a building whose sign read 'Blackwater Tavern and Inn.' I was breathing heavily and rapidly and I struggled to keep it under control. The last thing I need is for it to give my location away.

I gingerly peeled myself from my support and looked around the edge of the building. At the end of the dark street, I could just barely make out a tall, dark figure walking toward me. As I watched, it came closer.

And closer.

And closer.

And closer.

Just as I was about to run again, a hand covered my mouth and I was pulled into the closest alley.

* * *

**Cliffhanger! Again, sorry if this took a while. I hope this chapter made up for it! Please review :)**

**-Nopride**


	11. The Thin Ice

**Hey everyone! Thank you all so much for reviewing this fic! It now has at least fifty, which is outstanding. It really means a lot to me and it's what keeps this story going. Anyways, I know that you all probably want to see what happens next, considering I left it at that big cliffhanger. Here ya go.**

**As a heads up, this chapter is pretty short because I hardly have any Wi-Fi, so I might not be able to update for a while. I promise that the next chapter will be longer and much, much better than this one. I just need some time to write it and whatnot. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own this book/movie. All credit belongs to the author/directors and stuff.**

**Alexis: You don't have to wait any longer my friend! Haha thank you so much for your review!**

**Annie Faith and Taylor: Thanks for reviewing! Here's the next chapter for ya.**

**Crazyblonde13: Hahaha like I said, her hair may have some significance... And congratulations! You are my fiftieth reviewer! *Sets off party sparklers***

**Edowen: Yeah, I'm notorious for leaving cliffhangers lol. Anyways, enjoy!**

**Ginebra: I'm not necessarily evil... *Looks around nervously***

**Julie Winchester: Hahaha I can't tell you if you're right or not because that would destroy all suspense lol. Thanks for your review!**

**MischievousEnigma: No worries, I'm extremely shy as well. Thank you so much for reviewing. It really means a lot to me and everything you said were huge compliments!**

**Guest/ Supernatural Fan: Hahaha is it okay if I just refer to you as Supernatural fan from now on? lol I hope you like this update!**

**And here we go...**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_I gingerly peeled myself from my support and looked around the edge of the building. At the end of the dark street, I could just barely make out a tall, dark figure walking toward me. As I watched, it came closer._

_And closer._

_And closer._

_And closer._

_Just as I was about to run again, a hand covered my mouth and I was pulled into the closest alley._

* * *

Now

I began to struggle as much as I could, desperately trying to free myself so I could live to see another day. My captor's arms were strong and even though I was kicking and hitting hard enough and in the right places to make a grown man collapse, it wasn't doing diddly-squat.

Well isn't that just fine and dandy?

"Shh shh shh, it's just me," he said and I felt the ever evident form of relief.

Two seconds later, I was no longer being restrained and spun around to see Henry standing there, eyes incredibly dark even in the dawning light. If I didn't remember what happened last time, I would've tried to hug him. But seeing as though my memory almost never fails me... I didn't.

I leaned against the wall, completely exhausted from the sudden dive in adrenaline and he looked at me curiously.

"Are you alright?"

"Fine, just absolutely friggin' fine man," I hissed and carefully pressed a hand to the cut on my face.

His expression immediately changed from one of curiosity to one of intense concern. He knelt by me and pulled my hand away, gently examining the now swelling wound. For a moment, the darkness lifted itself from his eyes and I was able to see past the mask he'd managed to put up. But then it was gone and I was once again staring at what was like a brick wall.

"It's not bad," he finally said after a while. "I'll have Speed gather some ice once we get back."

I nodded and he helped me to my feet, one arm around my waist, the other around my shoulders. I was about to insist that he was overreacting, but then realized how much I was actually counting on his support.

"The little girl," I managed. "Did she get away? Is she okay? What about him? Is he still out here?"

Henry said nothing, just led me along the street toward the store. No one payed any attention to us, just minded their own business like people typically do. Only one or two good samaritans actually stopped and asked what happened, to which we stated that I'd had a horrible fall. Then we were all on our way, them continuing with their everyday lives, us continuing with our not so normal ones.

We reached the store in less than five minutes and Henry helped me up the small step in front of the door. I rolled my eyes at him, but silently appreciated the gesture. He walked with me to a chair and I sat down, shutting my eyes and leaning back. I didn't even hear him walk away, even though his shoes should've theoretically made a sound on the wooden floor.

"Olivia?" I heard a voice say and I snapped back to attention in time to see Speed gazing at me worriedly. "What's happened?"

"I should be asking you that," Henry said as he re-entered the room with an ice filled cloth in his hands.

The poor shopkeeper's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates and while I stared, he began to slowly back away. I saw fear flash through his features and there's no doubt that at that moment, he seriously considered running like hell. You know what? If I was in his shoes, I would be doing the same thing.

Henry advanced two steps toward him after handing me the cloth and the only thing I could do was continue to watch the scary, yet somewhat intriguing scene before me. Speed stumbled over a few of the barrels and nearly fell flat on his back during his retreat. The fear that had been written on his face a few moments ago was replaced by sheer panic as he struggled to come to his own defense.

As much as I wanted to see how this would play out, some part of me smartly thought that Henry would probably act upon his the threat he'd made earlier. And even though Speed had royally pissed me off today, that didn't necessarily mean I wanted him to die.

"Dude, you can let it go," I said as I held the ice pack to my face. "It's only a scratch."

I expected an argument. Actually, I expected a huge argument that would go on and on for at least twenty minutes. But instead, Henry merely shut his eyes and rubbed his temples, as if he was getting a massive headache. Speed took the opportunity to carefully edge further away until there was a barrier of goods in front of him that would serve as a suitable shield. He carefully brushed his orangey-blonde hair out of his frightened face and blinked rapidly, showing just how much he'd thought he was going to get killed. He looked at me apologetically and I waved a hand at him in an attempt to convey that I didn't care.

"I am so sorry," he began, but I cut him off.

"Trust me man. Even if you'd been there, I seriously doubt that there would've been anything for you to do... You don't know what had to be dealt with..."

At this statement, Henry raised his head from his hands and directed his attention to me.

"What do you mean by that?" He demanded sharply.

"F-forget it," I stammered, a little shaken by his tone. "You wouldn't believe me anyways."

"Well that depends on what you saw," Speed said as he regained his composure. "And don't worry, we've seen plenty of strange things as well."

This earned him a 'shut your trap' glare from the World's Biggest Jerk.

I bit my lip, debating whether or not to tell them the truth. Best case scenario: they believe me and prove that I'm not insane. Worst case scenario: they completely shut it down and say that I've finally lost my marbles. Even though I don't particularly care about what people think of me, I have no desire to be like Jack Nicholson in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

Balls.

"How superstitious are you guys?" I asked, deciding to play it safe for a while.

"Bad luck superstitious or ghost superstitious?" The shopkeeper questioned with a slight head tilt.

"Ghost."

The two men exchanged glances and I shrank down in my seat, completely embarrassed. I knew that I should've just kept this to myself. But no, I had to open my extremely unfiltered mouth again.

Aren't I a genius?

"Miss Armstrong, what did you see?" Henry asked after a while and I raised my gaze to his, green eyes meeting brown.

"V-vampire."

* * *

**Right so, this is really short and I'm so sorry. But I hope that what I have is good :) please review!**

**-Nopride**


	12. Tall Tales

**Hello everyone! Thank you so much for the reviews and for understanding the whole Wi-Fi thing. It really means a lot to me. You guys are incredibly awesome!**

**Sorry if this chapter sounds a bit rushed. I was so eager to write it once I got my Wi-Fi back. Anyways, I hope you like it! Let me know if I need to improve anything or whatnot. :)**

**Disclaimer: See previous chapters.**

**Alexis: Yeah, I guess I am a bit fond of cliff hangers, aren't I? But you know, it's what suspense is all about :)**

**Crazyblonde13: My sympathies to you for having to run four miles. It's definitely no easy task.**

**Edowen: Thanks for understanding about the time thing :) Here ya go!**

**Ginebra: Why thank you :) Here's the next chapter. I hope you like it. **

**Julie Winchester: Hahaha no she's cool with Liv lol. Now if you called her Olive Oil like Jimmy... :) Jk jk. Hope you enjoy this update!**

**RTVampireKilljoy: Awww thanks! What an awesome compliment :)**

**Supernatural Fan: Haha coolio then! Henry is adorable when he actually cares about something lol. Hope you like this chapter :)**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil_

_"How superstitious are you guys?" I asked, deciding to play it safe for a while._

_"Bad luck superstitious or ghost superstitious?" The shopkeeper questioned with a slight head tilt._

_"Ghost."_

_The two men exchanged glances and I shrank down in my seat, completely embarrassed. I knew that I should've just kept this to myself. But no, I had to open my extremely unfiltered mouth again._

_Aren't I a genius?_

_"Miss Armstrong, what did you see?" Henry asked after a while and I raised my gaze to his, green eyes meeting brown._

_"V-vampire."_

* * *

Now

To be frank, I seriously expected the Mad Hatter to waltz right through the front door of the shop and whisk me off to Wonderland. At least then I would be surrounded by people (or talking animals or whatever) who are just as nuts as I appear to be. But instead of that happening, Henry and Speed stared at me like they'd just been whacked with the Shock Stick. The weird thing was that it wasn't a 'good grief, this girl is toys in the attic crazy' kind of look. It was more of a 'holy crap, she found out something she wasn't supposed to know' one.

Okay so pregunta número uno: Does that mean I'm bonkers or not?

"You believe you saw a vampire?" Henry asked sharply, having been the only one of the two men that had regained his mentality within the last few seconds. He shook his head and advanced toward me, gripping my shoulders in an iron hold. "Do not lie about this Miss Armstrong; It is a very serious matter!"

"I'm not lying!" I exclaimed and shrugged his hands off. "I swear on my life! It all adds up. The teeth, the eyes, the creepy veins... Dude! I know what I saw!"

"And have you been bitten?" Speed asked with a shaky note to his voice, as if he was terrified of the answer.

"No!" I exclaimed and flinched away. "Eew!"

Henry took a few steps back after that and whispered something in the shopkeeper's ear. I saw his shining blue eyes widen as he hissed a retort of his own, glancing over at me as he did so. I raised my eyebrows and gave them each a pointed look; As I may or may not have said before, I don't mind when people talk about me, but I absolutely _hate it_ when someone plans my future. So as you can imagine, I was not a very happy camper at the moment.

"Look guys. Judging by the way you're reacting, you believe me. Thanks for that. But seriously, what the hell is going on? You sound like..."

I trailed off as my tired and stressed brain finally connected all the dots that have been strewed along this entire journey.

-Henry completely ignored my question about the monster back at his house.

-He also ignored the little girl and the vamp I just had an encounter with.

-Now they're both acting like they have a colossal secret that they're debating whether or not to share with me.

Oh crap.

I think I know what I'm dealing with.

"Wait a second," I said and stood up from my chair in case I needed to get in their faces. "Have you known about these creatures the whole time?"

I turned to Henry, who was looking at me with his typical aloof expression. But I could see something behind the carefully guarded brown eyes, something that held truth.

"Back at the house, did you know that what had attacked me was a vampire?"

"Miss Armstrong..."

"And you," I hissed and directed my attention to Speed as I recalled our conversation from yesterday.

(Vadoma is one of the most powerful women in the South. She and her brother are apart of an empire made up of mostly vam-... of very wealthy people.)

"Had you been about to say what I think you were going to? About Vadoma and her brother?"

You know the look on a puppy when it's just ripped up the sofa and you walk through the door an hour later? That's the expression Speed had on his face once I was finished talking.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," he muttered and swept his hair behind his ear.

"Nor do I," Henry said and my gaze jumped to his.

"Oh bull crap!" I yelled. "Take a gander at Orange Juice over there! He practically has a sign over his head shouting '_I knew everything_!' And you're telling me that you had absolutely no frigging clue? Sorry pal, but way too much evidence is here for this all to be a coincidence."

Henry rolled his eyes and took a deep breath before tiredly running a hand over his face. Speed only glared at me, apparently just a tad bit upset about the whole 'Orange Juice' thing. Well tough; If you can't take a joke then you shouldn't have joined.

"What do you want us to do Miss Armstrong?" The World's Biggest Jerk said, much to my extreme frustration.

"Good grief, do I have to spell it out for you? I just want you to tell me the damn truth! If I'm stuck here for the rest of my life, which it's starting to seem like that may be the case, then I want to at least know what's going on so I can have a heads up before the next catastrophic event happens."

For a few incredibly long minutes, neither of them said a word. Speed suddenly appeared to be busy with something under his fingernails and Henry was... Well, being Henry. In simple terms, he was just standing there, dark hair all messy and eyes tightly shut. To point out the obvious, he looked extremely conflicted (definitely at my expense).

"The President has allowed for us to stay in Washington with him for the time being," he said while I wondered what the hell that had to do with vampires. "I'll tell you everything on the way."

* * *

'On the way' turned out to mean over the course of three freaking days. During that wonderful time, I not only learned that the majority of slave owners and the Confederate Army were vampires, but I also found out that good ol' Honest Abe used to hunt them for a living.

Life is full of surprises isn't it?

"Okay, so let me see if I have this straight," I said as I absently stared into the small fire Henry had managed to get going. We'd crossed over the Washington DC border a few hours ago and had just set up camp. "The South mainly uses slaves as Vampire kibble, the Confederate soldiers are basically indestructible to the minnie ball that should play pinball with their bones, and President Lincoln used to be a hunter. Am I leaving anything out?"

"I don't know what pinball is, but indestructible, yes. You seem to have everything in order," Speed said from where he was tying the two horses to a tree.

What? You didn't really expect me to be on a horse by myself after what happened the first time, did you? Naturally, I made a perfectly reasonable argument that I used to convince the two men that there was no way in hell I was getting on a horse alone again. So that's why my arms were wrapped around Henry's shoulders the entire time, despite the small piece of pride that chooses random times to act up inside me. The main reason I didn't share horses with Speed is because I seriously think he lacks the coordination to help me should the stupid animal decide that it doesn't like me.

Again.

"So if vampires exist... Does that mean all other supernatural things do too?" I asked and Henry looked over at me and frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I've heard about other things. Like rougarous, wendigos, djins, shapeshifters, ghouls, ghosts, you name it. Are they real?"

"Except for ghosts and ghouls, I've never heard of such creatures," he said and I nodded, relief flooding through me. Those monsters looked scary enough in Supernatural. Thank God they're not real.

"So this is it? I know everything now?"

"Not quite..." Speed awkwardly said as he sat down across from us. He looked pointedly at Henry, who gave him the Glare of Death. Seems like the World's Biggest Jerk is trying to regain his title... and winning.

"Okay, so what else is there?" I asked and stood up to get my Katana from where it was attached to one of the saddles.

Don't judge. When you're me, you never know when a horse is going to go psycho and murder you with your own sword.

"It can wait until morning," Henry said, tone containing a detectable amount of strain.

I paused with my hand on the handle of the blade and turned around to look at him. He wasn't even paying attention to me. No he was way too busy trying to keep Speed from telling me what I didn't already know.

"Come on man, it's not like I'm going to freak out again. What is it?"

Before Henry could explain in a most likely watered down way, the shopkeeper blurted,

"He's a vampire."

My vision faded until it was like I was looking through a long tunnel. Sound was reduced to a sharp ringing that pierced my ears almost to the point of pain. I staggered back and barely saw Henry and Speed jump to their feet. I managed to stay in reality for about two more seconds before I hit the ground.

And everything went dark once again.

* * *

**Yay this chapter is finally done! We'll see how Olivia reacts to Henry being a vampire in the next chapter. And thanks again for all the reviews and for understanding the whole Wi-Fi thing :)**

**Until next time, adios!**

**-Nopride**


	13. Truth Be Told

**Welcome back everyone! I was super excited to write this chapter because Olivia's finally in the loop. Yippee! Anyways thanks again for all the reviews! If you have any suggestions for future scenes, feel free to state them (no slash though).**

**Disclaimer: See previous chapters.**

**Crazyblonde13: And so it was on the 28 of August in the year 2012, Joshua Speed was nicknamed Orange Juice. Lol thanks for reviewing! And hooray for Jolly Ranchers!**

**Edowen: I can assure you that there will be yelling :) Although with Olivia, shouldn't it just be a common assumption? Lol here ya go!**

**Julie Winchester: Orange Juice just seemed to me like he would be a huge blabber mouth when I was watching the movie. Haha here's the next chapter :)**

**RTVampireKilljoy: Aww thank you! I hope you like this update!**

**Supernatural Fan: 'Oh maw Cas!' Now that is an awesome expression that I should start using lol. Thank you my friend :) Here ya go!**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_I paused with my hand on the handle of the blade and turned around to look at him. He wasn't even paying attention to me. No he was way too busy trying to keep Speed from telling me what I didn't already know._

_"Come on man, it's not like I'm going to freak out again. What is it?"_  
_Before Henry could explain in a most likely watered down way, the shopkeeper blurted,_

_"He's a vampire."_

_My vision faded until it was like I was looking through a long tunnel. Sound was reduced to a sharp ringing that pierced my ears almost to the point of pain. I staggered back and barely saw Henry and Speed jump to their feet. I managed to stay in reality for about two more seconds before I hit the ground._

_And everything went dark once again._

* * *

Now

I can say with Abraham Lincoln honesty (which I now realize isn't really too honest after all, but I still like the expression) that I have come to despise the scent of alcohol. Well, at least when it's freaking right under my nose. I coughed and turned my head away from the glass of whiskey Speed was holding in his hand. With a slight groan, I managed to sit up and stay that way with Henry's help.

And then I remembered that I was supposed to be scared crap-less of him.

"Get the hell away from me!" I shouted as I scrambled to my feet and ran to the side of the camp that was furthest away from the two stunned men.

"Miss Armstrong," Henry began and took a step toward me, hands raised to try to convey 'I come in peace.' "Let me explain..."

"Explain?!" I frantically interrupted. "Explain?! Explain what? 'Gee, I don't know any nice way to put this, but I'm a monster that drinks blood to survive and I didn't tell you as soon as we met. Sorry, let me make it up to you by tearing your throat out.' I don't really know how you're going to 'explain' that!"

I'm sure that my eyes were as wide as a deer's (one that's about to be hit by either a truck or a bullet that is) and I could feel my chest rapidly rising and falling with each panicked breath I took. Speed was staring at me with an expression similar to this, although he looked like he was more concerned for his own safety than mine.

Rightly so. At the moment, I feel ready to viciously attack anyone (or anything for the matter) that comes near me.

But of course, Henry completely ignored my threatening stance by carefully advancing a few more feet until he was directly in front of me. I tried to back up, only to hit a tree.

Luck is never on my side, is it?

"I would never hurt you," he said. "Nor any other innocent person."

"I think that your definition of innocent is a little different than what I have in mind, pal."

"If I wanted you dead, don't you think I would've killed you before you even regained consciousness when you first arrived here?"

Well, I have to begrudgingly admit that he did have a point. Fact is, I wouldn't have stood a chance had he decided to just end my life at the very beginning. And despite the many irritable conversations we'd shared, there were extraordinary kindnesses that had allowed me to see past the darkness in his eyes. Could it be possible for these small glimpses to overrule the fear that was threatening to rip me apart?

Maybe. Major freaking maybe.

If you haven't noticed already (which would mean you haven't been paying attention at all), I don't easily trust people. It's one of the reasons that my mind registers "creeper" before "normal" about some random person on the street, even though they could be nice. It's not that I like doing this, but it's gotten to the point that I think i'm more paranoid than cautious. Many times I've wondered if it's going to affect me for the rest of my life or if it's just a phase.

But of course, my trust issues were apart of me before I even knew about vampires and I can assure you that they're going to get a whole lot worse.

Speaking of said predicament, I hadn't even bothered to answer Henry's irritatingly logical question. And although every instinct in my body was screaming at me to run and never look back, I decided to acknowledge that maybe some people are good for what may be the first time in my life.

Well, that's part of it. The other part is that S doesn't seem to like it whenever I get mad at Henry and as far as I know, that stupid letter sending thing is my only ticket out of here.

But I also like to think that I'm having some sort of breakthrough here.

_Ladies and gentlemen, Frasier has left the building._

"I know you wouldn't hurt me," I said as I slowly raised my eyes back to his. "Or you, Speed. And... I'm sorry. It's just... You think you know someone and then... Well, they're not what you thought they were. Can you understand that?"

It took a while, but Henry finally said,

"I believe we can. We've all been in situations like that before... You don't have to apologize Miss Armstrong."

I relaxed (most likely visibly) and flopped to the ground. Three days of continuous travel via horse is enough to make anyone exhausted. I would've preferred that we walk the seven hundred and ninety miles and brave the blisters. But no, traveling on horseback is so much more efficient than my idea. If you ask me, I'm incredibly pissed that the automobile wasn't invented until the early twentieth century. I never thought I'd miss the multiple classic cars my dad has parked in our garage that he insists on not selling.

After saying goodnight, the two men who i've fortunately or unfortunately (haven't decided which fits most yet) come to know fell asleep. Well, one of them did. The other remained sitting on a fallen tree in what looked like kind of a pissed mood.

Guess who it was.

With Henry sitting there literally ten feet away from me, I could not sleep at all. How could anyone when you've just found out that the guy you've been living with is a vampire? So instead of fall into the world of dreams (which at the moment is a lot more welcoming than reality), I stood up and sat down next to the World's Biggest Jerk. He briefly glanced over at me before turning his head and suddenly acquiring great interest in the fire ahead of us.

"Ignore me all you want, I'm still gonna sit here," I said and folded my arms against my chest as a cold wind severed the air.

He rolled his eyes and turned to me again, seemingly irritated. Yeah, I've been told that I have that affect on people.

"Alright then," he muttered, running a hand through his dark and messy hair. "Why can't you sleep?"

Like I was really going to tell him the truth.

"Acute insomnia... It comes and goes. Okay, your turn."

"Someone has to keep watch, don't they?... Now tell me about this insomnia. How long have you had it?"

"Well," I began and brushed my soil colored hair out of my face. I really need to get my hands on some scissors... or a knife. "Started last year, been acting up on and off since. For a few weeks, I'll be fine. Then it comes back and I get maybe two hours of sleep per night. Not a very glamorous quality of mine."

Okay, so it's not a complete lie; I do have partial insomnia. But it's not the reason I'm having trouble closing my eyes. Thankfully though, Henry totally bought it and didn't ask about it further. Good thing too; I was running out of stories to make up.

We both sat staring into the flames in silence for a good twenty minutes or so. Surprisingly, it wasn't awkward or anything like that. What it felt like was two friends (dare I say the word) enjoying an evening together. Although I should be terrified out of my mind by the fact that I'm sitting next to a vampire, I find myself not caring. If the Twilight chic can get over it, so can I.

Actually, Henry is the only person I've really trusted other than my family and few friends. I guess I didn't have much of a choice, considering that it was his front yard I got teleported to. But still, I know that it could've been a hell of a lot worse. For example, he could've been a creeper.

You know what?

Maybe people aren't that bad after all.

* * *

**Okay, so I apologize for the shorter chapters lately. I'm just not too good at doing journeys and stuff like that. I promise that things will be a lot better and longer by the next update. But I hope you liked this :)**

**Until next time,**

**-Nopride**


	14. A Cure For Most of What Ails You

**Hello everyone! Big thanks to all of you for the reviews! Each one puts a smile on my face :)**

**I'm extremely happy to say that this chapter is much longer than the previous ones. Hope you like it!**

**Alexis: No worries, everybody gets busy at times :) Oh and believe me. Olivia has not lost her smart ass qualities whatsoever. Hahaha hope you like this.**

**Crazyblonde13: Well, September 4th is fast approaching. Easy mistake :) enjoy.**

**Julie Winchester: As much as I have wanted to add in a romantic aspect, there is the slight problem of her being 14 :/ As for the whole Willy thing, you'll just have to wait and see...**

**MischievousEnigma: Tolerating is exactly the word I would use to describe their relationship status. I agree, she is pretty young. But the funny thing about aging is that it always seems to go so fast...**

**RTVampireKilljoy: All I can say is you'll see... Haha sorry. I can't give away too much.**

**Supernatural Fan: A new bond you say? Perhaps, my friend... Perhaps... Haha anyways, hope you like this.**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_Actually, Henry is the only person I've really trusted other than my family and few friends. I guess I didn't have much of a choice, considering that it was his front yard I got teleported to. But still, I know that it could've been a hell of a lot worse. For example, he could've been a creeper._

_You know what?_

_Maybe people aren't that bad after all._

* * *

Now

It's never a good sign when you wake up with your throat on fire and the rest of your body absolutely freezing.

I coughed and rolled over, curling in on myself to try and get at least a little warm. My eyes were dry and also had that disgusting crusty stuff around the lids. Each swallow was like having a hairdryer set on full blast in my neck and I didn't need a doctor to figure out what's wrong with me.

I've got Strep Throat.

Before you go questioning my diagnosing abilities, just let me say that i've had this particular illness many times in my life. When I was little, I used to get it every three weeks or so and was forced to take these giant horse pills that contained some sort of magical antibiotic. Then came the terrific moment that I finally had my tonsils removed and got to eat ice cream for a week. Ever since then, I've never been sick (well, until now that is).

I suddenly became more alert as a thought entered my ever working brain. Strep is no big deal in my time; the docs give you pills and then you're good to go. But if I remember my history class correctly, wasn't it lethal in the 1800s if it went untreated? Not only that, but I think it can turn into Scarlet or Rheumatic Fever as well. I may not have decided to major in medicine (and deal with disgusting flus and stuff every day? Uh, no), but I know that those two infections are bad.

Holy crap I'm gonna die!

Immediately after this scary realization occurred, I felt something against my forehead and flinched away. It took a while for me to figure out that it was someone's hand and not, oh I don't know, a grenade. All the remaining pride that I had completely vanished. Great. I'm sicker than hell and must look the part too (A.K.A: not very attractive).

"Jesus, she's burning up," Speed muttered. Or at least, that's who it sounded like. Every word was too softly spoken for me to be able to determine who it belonged to.

I groaned, partly because I'm in pain and partly because I know that I'm about to be treated like a child. Again.

"What?"

Now that voice was unmistakable. Sharp and containing a slight trace of a British accent.

Ten bucks says the worry I also detected is just a figment of my overactive and vivid imagination.

"She said he hadn't bitten her... Do you think she was telling the truth?"

This time, whatever was pressed to my head was cool. Not like ice, but more like air conditioning.

"The symptoms aren't right. They're more so that of Scarlet Fever."

_Who would care to deliver the eulogy?_

"Shall I fetch a doctor?"

"Tell me Speed. Do you know of any doctors that reside within this region?"

A+ for the appropriate use of sarcasm, man.

"Well it's at least another two days until we reach the White House."

"I fear she doesn't have that long."

Okay wow. That's one way to break the news to someone that they're dying. 'Hey, this is gonna suck for you, but you've only got three days to live and you're too sick to actually do anything fun. Sorry. Better luck next time.' To make things worse, I'm not even surrounded by my family and friends like people always are in fictional death scenes. So, does that mean Nature hates me or something? I don't know why because I honestly can't remember what I did to piss the bitch off.

"What do you suggest we do then?" Speed said, a detectable note of anger present in his tone.

I felt myself being lifted off the ground and although I didn't make a sound in protest, I hated the sudden lack of gravity.

"You bring the horses and supplies however quickly you can. I can get her help in a matter of hours."

Oh good God no. He's going to carry me to the White House? Not only does that sound like something out of a cheesy romance novel, but I'm not entirely sure I'll be able to refrain from throwing up on him.

"Alright. Here, you take this. If I lose it, she'll kill me."

I could tell that Speed was handing Henry my Katana and bag of stuff. If he goes through it while I'm out like this, I'll kick his ass from here until next Tuesday. I may not be a girly girl, but I turn into an animal whenever someone gets too close to my personal belongings. Not very nice, I know. Sue me.

After that last sentence, there was just complete silence. The only sound I heard was the air rushing past me.

"Miss Armstrong?" Henry gently asked and I managed to mumble something coherent.

"What do you want?"

"Don't open your eyes. It'll make you nauseous."

"I'm alr'dy nauseous."

"Try to sleep if you can. It'll be easier for you."

"Not happening anytime soon. Had it before."

He seemed bewildered at this.

"And you survived?"

"No I died and you're carrying my ghost." Even when I feel like crap, I can still find the energy to be a smart ass.

Every word that was spoken felt like I was putting my throat through a meat grinder. My voice had a gravelly, thick, disgusting quality to it, yet I couldn't find it in myself to feel embarrassed. Now if the churning organ that calls itself my stomach decides to heave everything I've eaten in the past two days, then I might discombobulate my mind.

"This is serious, Miss Armstrong. Not many people recover from this illness, especially at your age."

I was hesitant to tell him about antibiotics and all the other modern medicines. What was it Doc said in Back to the Future? No one should know too much about the future? Well, it was something like that. What really matters is that the crackpot scientist had a good point. There's no telling how much stuff I could Butterfly Effect just by mentioning twenty-first century technology.

New plan: I'm going to confuse the hell out of him until he's too stumped to question me further.

"I'm gonna need sixteen Carbon atoms, eighteen Hydrogen, two Nitrogen, four Oxygen, and one Sulfur. Get them to bond and then we'll have Penicillin... I think."

Yes I'm a science nerd who wants to major in Physics when I go to college. Yes my social life is far enough in the tubes that I've had enough free time to memorize the chemical formulas of certain medicines. Contrary to what you're probably thinking, no, the few friends that I have are not imaginary. Well at least, I'm pretty sure they're not; I haven't been checked into One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, so that's a pretty good sign.

"Could you explain that again?" Henry asked and speaking of crazy, he must think I've got toys in the attic.

Plan Number Two: Milk it.

"Can we not talk for a while? Hurts really bad."

"Of course. My apologies. I didn't know that..."

"You're not doing a very good job of keeping your mouth shut."

He got the memo and it was dead silent all the way up until I finally nodded off. I don't know if it happened because of the fever or what. But last thing I was aware of before totally passing out was the simple fact that I was completely and undeniably safe.

* * *

Panicked servants ran about the White House, each wanting to be the one who alerted the President about his strange and frightening visitor. Not only did this man seem like he was darkness personified, he was carrying a young, pale, and sick girl in his arms. When one of the butlers attempted to demand what his business was with the President, he was merely shoved aside into the doorway rather roughly. The man then continued with whatever it was he was there for, seeming to ignore whatever the angry butler had to say.

When Henry had told him that he was planning to bring Miss Armstrong to the White House, Lincoln hadn't expected their arrival to be anything like it was. Of course, it wasn't like his vampire friend to remain outside until he was let in. No, he usually just did it himself, appearing in the President's office at seemingly random moments. But this time, things were much, much different.

The door to his office was kicked open rather forcefully and Lincoln was shocked to see Miss Armstrong looking as pale as milk. Without even bothering to ask, Henry set her down on one of the two sofas.

"What happened?" The President demanded, not quite able to keep the accusation out of his voice.

"Nothing," Henry said sharply, detecting the tone and growing slightly defensive in response. "She was sick like this when she woke up."

"Is it because..."

"Speed asked the same question. No, vampires aren't to blame here. I'm fairly certain it's Scarlet Fever."

"Where is Speed now?"

"He's bringing the horses and should arrive in a few days."

Lincoln directed his attention to the ill (and most likely dying) young girl. He pressed his hand to her forehead and felt that it was burning like a fire. He called for one of his servants, Martha, and told her to cold water as well as a cloth. The only thing they could do was try to keep the fever at a manageable temperature and hope for the best. Although Miss Armstrong was strong, not even the healthiest of people can possibly hope to combat the force of nature. Sadly, Lincoln thought he knew how the situation was going to play out.

She wasn't going to make it.

Throughout the day and into the night, both Henry and the President kept watch over the poor girl. There were times when the fever would go down and the two thought that she'd beaten the odds (again) and was going to recover. But then it would spike and reality would once more set in.

Around midnight, when most of his servants and butlers had gone to their rooms, Lincoln was about to retire himself and leave Henry to look after Miss Armstrong. As he started to walk toward the door, a bright flash lit up the room and caused the two men to shield their eyes. When everything died down, they both spun around in the electrically charged air to see a smoking package on the desk. Sitting on top of it were two carefully folded pieces of paper.

One of them read 'For the girl' and the other 'Read me.' The two friends carefully approached the hot package, both denying what they were seeing until Lincoln picked up the letter addressed to them and confirmed that it was really there. He gingerly opened it and began to read.

_'Trivial sickness. Just wake her up and give her what's in the package. After she takes it, she should be fine by morning._

_You're welcome._

_-S'_

After receiving a slight nod from Lincoln, Henry quickly opened the package. Inside was a small container with a bunch of small, green tube looking things. He took it out and held it to the light only to discover that there was more writing on it.

_Olivia Armstrong_

_Penicillin_

_Take one every night until none remain_

Henry looked over at his friend, who shrugged and motioned his head at the girl. The vampire nodded and gently shook her shoulder as he approached the sofa. Her eyes opened and she blinked up at him groggily.

"Wha' now?" She murmured, irritation evident in her voice.

Wordlessly, he handed her the container. She took it and sat up to read the message on the front. She smiled broadly at some apparent good news. It took a while, but she finally opened it and swallowed one of the green capsules before leaning back.

"Antibiotics," she said with a grin directed at the two dumbfounded men. "The last wonder of the world. I'll be fine."

She pushed her hair out of her face and once again shut her eyes. Lincoln and Henry remained in the room to see if this 'antibiotic' would actually work. Sure enough, her fever broke around three in morning, much to their relief.

It seemed as though Death had been beaten once again.

* * *

**I think it's plausible that Olivia would get sick at one point in time. Also makes good material for an interesting chapter (I hope). Anyways, I really hope you liked it! Please let me know what you think :)**

**Oh and the updates are going to be a little spaced out because of school and whatnot. I'll try to update every weekend, so tune in then :)**

**Until next time my friends!**

**-Nopride**


	15. Leaving Just A Memory

**Hey everyone! So the first week of school is done, hope that I haven't been keeping you waiting for too long. I was super nervous about everything and all I can say is that I'm glad it's the weekend. Anyways, here ya go!**

**Disclaimer: Something about previous chapters, right?**

**Alexis: Thanks for understanding the whole school thing :) Here's the next chapter.**

**Crazyblonde13: I love cats but unfortunately, they don't love me. Just ask my friend's kitten, whose sharp claws had a catastrophic encounter with my arm. I still have the scars lol. **

**Ginebra: Thank you :) I hope you like this update!**

**Julie Winchester: You weren't rambling :) Anyways, I don't really know why I made her that young. Maybe to add a different twist to things?**

**Passing Shadow: Aww thanks. It was one of my favorite chapters to write as well. Hope you like this update!**

**RTVampireKilljoy: Glad you liked the whole fast running thing. That actually had me worried because I thought it would be too cheesy. Lol here ya go!**

**Supernatural Fan: Hahaha *spoiler alert*, I think you'll say OMC at the end of this chapter ;) **

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_"Antibiotics," she said with a grin directed at the two dumbfounded men. "The last wonder of the world. I'll be fine."_

_She pushed her hair out of her face and once again shut her eyes. Lincoln and Henry remained in the room to see if this 'antibiotic' would actually work. Sure enough, her fever broke around three in morning, much to their relief._

_It seemed as though Death had been beaten once again._

* * *

Now

Okay it's official: Antibiotics have been added to my List of Awesomest Things Ever. Not only do I feel gigantically better, I feel like I was never sick at all, which is amazing, considering I was a step away from meeting the most feared Horseman himself. But thanks to S and his Merry Band of Supernatural Beings, I am still up and kicking. So yay for modern medicine!

This morning, I woke up bright and early at o'light thirty and nearly scared the hell out of Henry and Lincoln. Apparently, people who are recovering from Strep Throat in 1863 don't suddenly bolt out of a dream in which they'd incorrectly answered a question at school. Naturally when I sat up screaming, 'Not the ruler, the scabs just healed!', it was pretty safe to assume that the two men were shell shocked. Henry had been completely zonked out in one of the chairs across the room from me but when I yelled, he'd jumped up and nearly broken the lamp that was on the table next to him. Lincoln had snapped his head up from the papers he was reading at his desk and looked around the room, totally startled.

Then they both just stared at me, which brings us to now.

"Miss Armstrong, are you alright?" The President asked, standing up and walking over to me.

"Uhhh... Yeeeaaah, I'm fine," I stammered as I looked up at him. Jeez Louise, he is freaking tall! "Just had a nightmare."

"Would you care to discuss it?"

Discuss what? Maybe I'll say that when I was in the hospital for a compound fracture after Jimmy accidentally pushed me down the stairs, my stupid traveling teacher person smacked my knuckles with a ruler if I got a question wrong. Or maybe I'll say that my piano teacher did the same whenever I messed up... Okay, the second one is a lie (me play the piano? Yeah, fat chance of that ever happening) and the first one is partially true. I really did have a compound fracture and a mean traveling teacher lady, but I didn't fall down the stairs... I jumped because I was trying to be like Peter Pan.

Don't judge, I was a kid and kids do stupid things.

"Nah, I don't think it'll mean much. It's silly," I said, trying to get the topic to drop.

Thankfully, Lincoln is a lot better at picking up hints than most of the people I've met in this time period. He simply nodded and tipped his top hat at me before exiting the room.

I turned to Henry, who raised his eyebrows at me and leaned against the wall.

"'The scabs just healed?'" He questioned and I chuckled.

"Don't ask because believe me, you don't want to know."

He smiled and I slowly got off the couch I'd been lying on for what felt like an eternity. Judging by the way my legs feel like mush, I can say that it would be safe to bet on that length of time. I staggered a bit and saw Henry start to move toward me, but I waved him off, determined to not show more weakness than I already have these past few days. Finally, my feet woke up from their slumber as well and I was able to stand up without worrying about crashing to the floor.

"So I was out for a while huh?" I asked to change the subject.

"Quite; perhaps twelve hours or more. We then received a package with a letter addressed to you."

He gestured over at an unopened envelope that was sitting on Lincoln's antique desk (well, it's an antique in my time). I walked over to it, my legs getting stronger and more sure with each step. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a servant poke her head into the room, see me, obtain a look of wonder on her face, and leave after a glare from Henry.

Weird.

"What's with Brady Bunch over there?" I asked and pointed at the door where the young woman had just disappeared.

Henry glanced in that direction and then rolled his eyes. Okay seriously; Can't the guy at least pretend that he can stand to be around other people?

"Well, it's rather... unusual for someone of your age to make such an astounding recovery," he said and I frowned.

"Okay, so does that mean she thinks I'm like, magical or something?"

He shrugged and I decided to just let it drop. I've dealt with people thinking I'm 'unusual' my whole life. A few more aren't going to make much of a difference.

I picked up the letter and tore it open to find a piece of paper that had been folded over many times. Alright, the whole reason this was sent to me was so I could read what S had to say, not so that I could learn origami. By the time I finally succeeded in unraveling everything, I'd obtained paper cuts all over my fingers. Back in Grammar School, paper art designs always ended in disaster for me. Not only was I the one with the worst project of them all, I was also the kid who took the most bandaids out of the emergency kit.

Henry eventually had to leave the room because of the blood and I was seriously grateful that he didn't rip my throat out. After saying that I could find him down the hall and to the left in the parlor, he softly shut the door behind him. Finally alone, I looked down at the letter and began to read.

_'Olivia,_

_Did you honestly think that we would send you on this journey just to have you die of something as silly as Strep Throat? If so, then maybe you're not as bright as we thought you were._

_I argued with my comrades to let me send this note. Let it be known that this is the last time you'll hear from me, for many of us feel as though you've been getting too much assistance. I've had your guitar and amp sent to the White House along with some other belongings in what you could call a 'care package.' Please try not to screw anything up; I'm not going to be there to fix it._

_Things may seem impossible right now, yet I have no doubt that you'll be able to pull through. But as much as I would like to tell you more, it would defeat the whole purpose._  
_Remember this from now on: you are truly on your own._

_Good luck, Sunshine._

_-S'_

I let the paper fall to the floor after I finished reading it and leaned heavily against the desk.

_You are truly on your own._

Even though I like to think that i'm mature for my age, I'm still only fourteen years old. I can't even drive a car yet and now I'm supposed to just automatically know what to do in this crappy situation I've found myself in.

"You son of a bitch!" I yelled and glared daggers at the ceiling, as if the answer to my troubles could be found there. "Why? Can you at least answer that? Why me? Why did you choose me for your stupid little experiment? I don't know if you've been paying attention these past few weeks, so maybe I need to spell it out for you!"

Salty tears leaked out of my eyes and I angrily wiped them away. They stung the fresh cuts on my hand, but I didn't care. I couldn't bring myself to give a damn about anything except going home.

"_I can't do this_!" I exclaimed, miraculously undetected by everyone in the massive building. "I'm not the person you want me to be! I can't be Alice in your crummy version of Wonderland! I just want to get out of here!"

I waited for a few seconds to see if I would get a response. No sound came to my ears and I slammed my fist down on the table.

"Please! It's not me, ya hear? Whatever you need in this time period, you gotta find someone else to make it happen because I can't okay? I can't! IT'S NOT ME!"

I sank to the floor and pulled my knees to my chin. I was sobbing profusely, barely managing to string in coherent tidbits of 'I want to go home!' here and there. I didn't even hear the small knock on the door that someone made before gently pushing it open.

"Excuse me, Miss... Armstrong is it?" A quiet voice asked and I shifted my tear-stained eyes to the left.

"Who's asking?" I snapped as I directed my attention back to the floor and attempted to burn holes in it.

I heard footsteps cross the room and stop in front of me. When I looked up, I was face to face with a woman who looked to be in her mid forties. She wore her dark hair back in the ever popular bonnet that I seriously still think is the worst invention ever made by man. Her soft blueish-grey eyes gazed down at me worriedly and I was for some reason reminded of my mom.

"I was passing the room when I heard you," she said, that gentle tone still in her voice. "Are you alright?"

I slowly stood up and pushed my growing brown hair behind my shoulders. It gets long abnormally fast and I guess I should be grateful; I won't look like a freak anymore... Well, I'll look like less of one anyways.

"I uh... I'm fine," I muttered as I looked down a little ways at her. Finally, someone who's shorter than me! "Just a little stressed I guess."

She nodded sympathetically and extended her hand, which I just looked at for a while before realizing that I was supposed to shake it.

"Mary Todd Lincoln."

"Olivia Armstrong... Hey, aren't you the psychopa-... psy... psychology expert?"

If you haven't deduced this already, it seems to be apparent that I have the social skills of a tree.

"I'm actually not familiar with that term. What is it?"

Oh thank God for cover ups!

"It's the study of the human brain. Sorry, I must have you mistaken with one of the doctors here." Please let there be doctors on the grounds. Please. "Sorry."

"Well, now that's quite alright. Everyone has their misunderstandings. Now, can I get you anything? I could have Alice make you a nice hot cup of tea and a tray of cookies."

I am completely at loss as to how all these 1800s people seem to know my food weaknesses. Cookies are like my Kryptonite and if I'm mad at someone and they make them for me, we're best friends again.

A glance over at Mrs. Lincoln revealed that she was obviously waiting for me to answer her. Man, I am just on a roll today!

"That sounds awe-... lovely."

* * *

Fifteen minutes saw the two of us sitting in one of the many parlors and discussing small topics like fabrics, dresses, and shoes. Well, she was more so blabbing on and on about it. I'm deprived of any interest or knowledge of those subjects, so I just nodded my head politely and said 'oh really?' when it seemed appropriate. Henry was casually relaxing in one of the chairs adjacent to the couch Mrs. Lincoln was currently occupying. He was also visibly trying not to laugh at my complete inability to overcome my awkwardness.

_Jackass_, I thought and glared at him, which only caused him to cover his mouth with his hand.

It was also becoming harder and harder to not grab the delicious sugary cookies by the fist full. I had to remind myself to take one every nine or ten minutes (yes, I was counting) so I wouldn't look like a total pig.

"Oh forgive me, Miss Armstrong," Mrs. Lincoln began after I reached for another dessert, but I cut her off.

"You can call me Olivia."

"Now that would be rude. It seems as though I have forgotten my manners already though. I have yet to ask you about yourself."

I looked to Henry, who shook his head in a '_Don't say anything that could possibly be deciphered as futuristic_.' gesture. Okay those probably weren't his exact thoughts, but the action was still clear.

"Like what?" I asked, playing dumb.

"Well to start, where are you from?"

"Uh California," I said as I absently pulled at the scratchy fabric on my dress that she let me borrow. The other one was totally dirty, considering I hadn't changed out of it in, like, a week. "San Francisco to be exact."

"Ah, a true Westerner! Henry tells me that he's a friend of your father. What's his name, dear?"

"Clint Eastwood Armstrong. His mother had her maiden name hyphenated."

"Did you inherit your extraordinary eyes from him?"

"I think extraordinary is overdoing it a little," I said with a chuckle.

"Nonsense! I don't think I've seen a shade of green like that before. Why, I can't even compare it to anything."

"Well, yeah, I do have my dad's eyes. We like to think that they're like the rock malachite."

"I see. That's such a lovely stone. I actually have many pieces of jewelry that I believe contain it."

"Really? That's incredible!"

My enthusiasm was fake enough to even make me wince. Thankfully, she didn't notice and continued on.

"What do you like to do in your free time?"

Jeez lady what is this, twenty questions?

"I really like to read and write. Oh and I play guitar here and there."

'Play' should be more like 'shred', but I don't think that's an acceptable term in this time period.

Before we could continue the conversation, a male servant who couldn't have been older than me (well hell-o cute boy) walked over to Mrs. Lincoln and whispered something in her ear. The President's wife frowned and slowly got to her feet.

"If you'll excuse me," she said, appearing to be rather distant. "I need to go check on my son. It seems as though he's fallen ill."

She excited the room with a grace that I wish I could mimic. As she turned down the hall, a maid looked like she was trying to walk through the front door without being seen. I stared more closely at her, for something seemed oddly familiar. Call me crazy, but I know I've seen that same blonde hair and smug face before. Before I could try to form a name, her eyes suddenly cut to mine (most likely because I have increasingly crappy luck) and widened. In that second, I knew that I wasn't just being a paranoid, panic stricken child.

Vadoma.

It took only a moment for her to vanish outside, but that was long enough for Henry to notice that something was up. He stood and walked over to me, but I didn't even notice until he shook my shoulder. I jumped a mile in the air and raised my terrified gaze to his brown eyes.

And then it all made sense.

I leaped to my feet and ran down the hall Mrs. Lincoln had taken when she went to check on her son. Henry was right behind me, puzzlement at my actions written all over his face. I didn't bother to explain myself, only continued with my flight until I reached a room that a few people were crowded around.

"What's going on here?" I asked the nearest servant, who simply shrugged.

"Master Willie has been feeling unwell."

"May we go in?" Henry asked as he appeared behind me.

"I don't think that's a..."

"Let them through," a different voice said, one that was filled with pain and knowledge.

It didn't take a genius to figure out that it was the President who had spoken. Henry and I exchanged worried glances before hesitantly stepping through the doorway. What we saw was enough to make anyone's heart, whether it was beating or not, hurt like you wouldn't believe.

Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln were both sitting on the edge of a grand bed while a doctor examined the young boy residing in it. His face was a scary shade of alabaster and his hair stuck to his head in a feverish sweat. He looked to be about eleven years old and pretty small for his age. Dark circles made themselves prominent under his grey eyes and even blinking them seemed to take a massive amount of energy.

Something on the poor boy's arm jumped out at me and I curiously wondered what it was. When I turned my inspection upon it, I felt my mouth drop open in shock.

An angry red wound that looked like a zombie bite marked his ashen skin. Blue veins around the injury were magnified and the area surrounding it was swollen and inflamed.

Oh my God.

"I've never seen anything like it," the doctor said in a soft voice to the two parents. "I'm afraid the only thing we can do is make him comfortable."

I saw the President hang his head and tightly shut his eyes. I looked over to Mrs. Lincoln next and noticed that her hands were shaking uncontrollably. Startled, I glanced up at her face, only to find that her gaze was glassy and unseeing. I may not be an expert in human actions, but I've seen that kind of expression in enough movies to know what it meant.

She was about to dissolve into hysterics.

"We gotta get her out of here," I whispered to Henry, who directed his attention where mine was. "She's gonna go nuts on everyone and that's not going to help the kid."

"It's not our place to take a mother from her child," he said, but I could see that he knew I was right.

"Well tough man! I've seen this kind of thing before. You need to listen to me. That woman cannot stay in this room any longer."

For the first time, the doctor noticed us and walked over. His thinning grey hair was combed over his scalp in an attempt to disguise the massive bald spot on the back of his head. The cover was failing miserably, for the guy didn't look any younger than sixty two. He took off his rounded glasses and placed them on his shirt before speaking.

"I'm sorry, but you'll have to leave," he said in a low voice. "It's not the right time for visitors."

I opened my mouth to protest, but Henry beat me to it.

"We're close friends," he hissed in a menacing voice that made me shudder. "I suggest you let us stay."

The doc flinched back, nearly dropping his spectacles to the floor in the process. He fearfully looked up at Henry before deciding that if he wanted to keep his head, he should agree to his terms.

I really need to learn that trick.

Mrs. Lincoln suddenly let out a high, keen wail that had all of us covering our ears to try and keep them from bleeding. I'm surprised that the windows and the doc's spectacles didn't shatter from the shriek.

Finally deciding to act on my advice, Henry gently took the grieving woman by the shoulders and escorted her to one of the servants. She disappeared in a sea of arms and condolences while we all stared after her trembling form.

"Momma!" The little boy weakly moaned and I knew that I couldn't stand around and do nothing.

I took Mrs. Lincoln's spot on the bed and gently ran a hand through the kid's hair while whispering soft words of comfort. He looked up at me, fearful at first, but soon relaxing when he saw that I wasn't going to hurt him. His lower lip trembled and his eyes filled with tears.

"I wan' m' mamma," he said, so softly that I had to strain in order to hear him.

I saw Lincoln get up and walk to the far corner of the room. He buried his face in his hands and I couldn't help but notice the sobs that shook his shoulders. I looked over at Henry and motioned my head over at the grieving man. He seemed kind of awkward about it, but he eventually moved over to try and help his old friend.

"Mamma," the boy said again and I had to look away for a moment.

"You're mamma loves you," I said after a while to try and comfort him.

Immediately, tears rolled down his cheeks and all theories I had on how to help a scared child flew out the window.

Unless...

"_Hush now baby, baby, don't you cry_." I sang as softly as I could.

Slowly, his sniffling stopped and I took it as a cue to keep going.

"_Momma's gonna check out all your girlfriends for you. Momma won't let anyone dirty get through. Momma's going to wait up until you get in. Momma will always find out where you've been. Momma's gonna keep baby healthy and clean_..."

Visibly relaxing now.

"_Oooohhh babe. Oooohhhh babe_. "

Eyes drawing to a close.

"_Oooohh babe, you'll always be baby to me_."

Breathing a soft, final sigh.

"_Mother did it need to be so high_?"

And then he was gone.

* * *

**Okay, that ending seriously made me extremely sad! I almost started crying myself! Anyways, I hope you liked it and again, sorry for the delay. Please tune in next weekend for the next update!**

**-Nopride**


	16. Another Brick in the Wall

**Hello everyone! So that's yet another week of school behind me (yay!) and it's good to be writing again :) Sorry if the last chapter was depressing, but I do believe it helped to move the story along. Also, I apologize for taking so long to update! Something came up, but i'm back now! Anyways, here you go!**

**Disclaimer: See previous chapters.**

**Alexis: Awww thank you! Your review was so sweet! I hope you that you like this update :)**

**Crazyblonde13: Sounds like that kitten of yours is a little trouble maker haha. Anyways, thank you for your review.**

**Edowen: No worries, it's all good :) Glad that you're back!**

**xNinjaxBunnyx: Yes, the little boy's death was incredibly sad in the book and I apologize for not saving him in this fic. It just didn't seem right.**

**RTVampireKilljoy: Thank you :) haha I'm glad that you liked the awkward wakening lol. Also glad that Henry running wasn't cheesy.**

**Supernatural Fan: Aw I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make you cry! But I'm so glad that you liked it!**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_Things may seem impossible right now, yet I have no doubt that you'll be able to pull through. But as much as I would like to tell you more, it would defeat the whole purpose._

_Remember this from now on: you are truly on your own._

_Good luck, Sunshine._

_-S'_

_..._

_Breathing a soft, final sigh._

_"Mother did it need to be so high?"_

_And then he was gone._

* * *

Now

The plantation house loomed over the cotton field like a night watchman on duty. Lights, dazzling and bright, illuminated the portals on the walls, casting a glow on the dirt road to the door. Bitterness had taken a toll on the woman walking up that path, an elegant air about her. Cold eyes looked about, noting every detail and letting the paranoia sink in until there was nothing but solidity left in her body. She extended a pale, slender hand and opened the heavy oak barrier to enter the celebration.

Pairs of beady crows' gazes snapped to her and she allowed herself to be admired for a few precious seconds. She then swept across the center of the grand ballroom toward the man that was occupying the most secluded corner. He directed his attention to her grandiose frame and smiled.

"I trust things went well, my dear sister?" He asked, an excited glow hidden in his face.

"The boy is taken care of," she said as she grabbed a glass of red liquid from a servant.

"And the girl?"

The crystal in her hand acquired a dangerous crack and she quickly took a sip.

"She was not out of Henry or Lincoln's sight for more than a few seconds at a time. I wouldn't have been able to get to her without being noticed."

"What a shame. I supply you with one of the most important tasks this empire has seen and yet you fail to complete it."

"The boy should be enough of a toll. If we somehow manage to kill the girl, it'll simply be extra."

Adam gave a devilish smirk and leaned against the wall, folding his arms over his chest in an effort to contain his acrimony.

"I expect more from you next time."

He pushed away from his support and left the room, leaving Vadoma to stare after him with a nearly undetectable glint in her eye.

But then the puddle dried and the draught began once more.

* * *

I relaxed on the front steps of the White House, absently pushing a stick lying on the stones around with my Converse covered foot. I'd changed out of the scratchy dress and into one of my black t-shirts and a pair of blue jeans. It was an attempt to make myself feel more comfortable due to the previous escapade and the sudden cramping in my stomach that had mysteriously started. But it was to no avail because fresh tears leaked out of my eyes and I drew a hand across my face to clear them. I held my iPod in a grip that was so tight, it almost cracked the screen. Mother played again and again through the speakers and each time it ended, I hit the replay button. It had been the last thing the little boy heard and I could at least honor him by acknowledging that.

Something gently touched my shoulder and I jumped with a startled gasp. I hit pause and looked up to see Henry staring at me, sadness in his brown eyes for the first time. He sat down and curiously gazed at the mysterious (to him anyways) device in my hands. I pulled the headphones out of my ears and tucked the iPod in my pocket after deciding that I really didn't want to explain what it was to him. Thankfully, he didn't ask any questions and we both remained silent and staring out at the darkening sky.

"H-how is he?" I asked after a while, voice quiet and maybe a little frightened.

"About what you would expect. The little boy was his world."

I nodded and pulled my knees up to my chin, the previous few hours replaying themselves in my head. One minute, everything seemed fine, happy even. The next, we had a screaming mother, a grieving father, and a dead kid to somehow deal with. A few men dressed in all black suits had come in and carried the body away after covering it with a white sheet. Only after they'd shut the door behind them did Lincoln finally break.

Henry and I hadn't known what to do but as fate would have it, Speed barged into the room looking like he was ready to fight the Justice League. He motioned for us to leave and we hightailed it out of there as fast as we could. A small part of me that wasn't grief-stricken was a bit offended by the shopkeeper's lack of trust in my comforting skills. But now that I think about it, I know that he was right, seeing as though I usually go and make things worse.

Yay me.

"What about you?" Henry eventually asked, startling me out of my thoughts. "You don't seem to be fairing too well. Are you alright?"

"Peachy," I hissed sarcastically. "Not only was I just a firsthand witness to a child's murder, I was the one that had to help him through it. So excuse me if I appear to be a little shaken."

Okay, I'll admit that it was wrong of me to snap at him. But if you were to make a list of all the times he's snapped at me, then my offense would seem like nothing.

He nodded acceptingly and I leaned back against the steps, putting my arms behind my head and sighing deeply. For uncountable minutes, neither one of us said a word to the other. We just sat there grieving in our own way until I finally spoke up.

"You know, I miss the times when I was little where I thought every person was initially good," I blinked rapidly to clear the water in my eyes. "Shows how much I knew about the world."

"People are good, Miss Armstrong... You simply think there's more hate than care because it's all you hear about. You've been exposed to a horrifically large amount of darkness and it's perfectly natural for you to to believe that's all life has to offer."

I stared at him, completely and utterly baffled. Who knew that a guy who kinda seemed like a total assbutt at first could actually be philosophical? I was so surprised that I almost couldn't think of anything to say.

"Is that your diagnosis, Dr. Crane?"

Well, I did say almost, didn't I?

"I don't understand that reference," he said with a tired note in his most likely secretly amused voice. "But as for the diagnosis, yes. I've been around for a while, Olivia, and although there is a lot of bad, there is also a great deal of good."

I sat upright and snapped my attention to him. He leaned back, a little weirded out by my sudden spontaneity, but I ignored him.

"Did you just use my first name?"

He flinched and ran a hand over the back of his neck.

"I don't believe so..."

"You did!" I exclaimed and felt a large smile spreading over my face for the first time since what happened earlier. "Holy crap, you did!"

"Miss Armstrong," He was backtracking now. "I did not! You must have... misheard me."

"No way compadre. I'm on to you man. You finally called me by my actual name and I'm gonna tell everybody!"

"You will do no such thing!"

"Why? What is it with you 1800s folk and your inability to be casual? Live a little!"

He took a deep breath and rolled his eyes, giving me the Glare o' Death at the same time. Childishly, I stuck my tongue out at him and jumped to my feet. A small smirk appeared on his face, but then it was gone just as fast as it had arrived. He shook his jet black hair to the side and stared down at the ground.

"If you don't want people to know you're so 'impolite,' you're gonna have to stop me," I said and bounded up the steps.

It's not my best idea to pretty much play tag with a vampire but nevertheless, I dashed into the White House and ran through the halls to find a servant that wasn't as depressed as everyone else.

I deal with somber moments by burying them and acting happy. Get used to it people.  
Finally, I found one of the cooks who appeared to be in good spirits and began to tell my story.

"Hey, you'll never believe what just happened! Henry Sturges just called-... mph!"

"You just keep on walking, Bret," Henry said from behind me. His hand was covering my mouth and I giggled at the childish gimmick. "There's nothing to see here."

The cook slowly nodded, confused by what was going on. When he disappeared down the hall, Henry uncovered my mouth and glared at me, eyes burning with contempt.

"Are you insane? There was just a death here and you're running around like a fool!"

"Insult me all you want, Sunshine. You gotta have laughter to survive."

Even though I refused to admit it, his words internally hurt.

"Miss Armstrong," he said and rubbed his temples as if he were getting a headache. "Please try to be considerate. It's not the time for this."

I knew that, boy did I ever. The grief inside me threatened to overcome my mind and a sudden cramp in my stomach caused me to wince.

He was right. I was acting stupidly.

"Tell you what," I said, using the frame of the nearby sofa as a support to lean against. "You call me Olivia from now on, and this whole ordeal never happened."

He frowned at my sudden lack of enthusiasm and extended a hand to steady my shaking shoulder.

"Are you alright?" He asked, going from completely annoyed to worried in a matter of seconds. Jeez, I thought that I was the one with the current mood swings. "You're not feeling I'll again, correct?"

I gritted my teeth and shook my head, turning away and heading toward the couch. I flopped down and curled on my side, the cramping in my stomach getting worse every second. If there are any females out there, I could really use your sympathy.

"Miss A-... God, fine. Olivia? What's wrong?"

I buried my face in a fluffy pillow and chucked another one in the general direction of his head.

"Go away."

Apparently, he'd been around girls long enough to know what was going on because when I looked back at him, his face was bright red.

Embarrassment all around!

"I'll... Go see how Speed is faring with Abe," he said and was out of the room in a split second.

I groaned and relaxed back into the couch again, hating Mother Nature and the World for cursing me with this crap.

The last few hours before I fell asleep were a living Hell.

* * *

**Okay, I'm sorry if this chapter seems a little random, but I thought that I needed a little comedy to lighten things up a bit. I hope that you enjoyed reading and the next update will move the story along again :)**

**Until then, adios mis amigos!**

**-Nopride**


	17. Wishful Thinking

**Hello all! I would like to take the time and say thank you for following this story (don't worry, this isn't the end). It really means so much to me and I couldn't continue without you guys. Each one of your reviews makes me really happy and they put a big smile on my face :)**

**Anyways, just wanted to say that. Here's the next chapter!**

**Disclaimer: Blah previous blah chapters blah.**

**Alexis: Thank you for your review! I am so sorry that you're not feeling well. 101.3, that's some rough stuff. Hope that you feel better by the time you read this response :)**

**Crazyblonde13: Haha being hyper is really run lol. For some reason, coffee doesn't give me an adrenaline rush. I have to drink like a six pack of Coca Cola in order to get a sugar rush lol.**

**Edowen: I like to think that humor is the best medicine for everything. Whenever I've had a really crummy day at school or something, I always feel so much better when I watch Frasier or another funny thing :)**

**Julie Winchester: I'm glad that you liked it! I hope you enjoy this one as well.**

**Kyakushi: Ah a new face! Welcome to the fic my friend! Your review was really sweet and thank you for that :) Hope you like this.**

**RTVampireKilljoy: She really doesn't get a break, does she. Oh well; I guess that's to be expected when you're dealing with 1800s vampires :)**

**Supernatural Fan: Hm like little kids or an old married couple you say? Haha I've always liked it when a typically serious adult shows his/her inner child in a movie/book. Makes them more fun.**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_"I'll... Go see how Speed is faring with Abe," he said and was out of the room in a split second._

_I groaned and relaxed back into the couch again, hating Mother Nature and the World for cursing me with this crap._

_The last few hours before I fell asleep were a living Hell._

* * *

Now

I groaned and opened my eyes to a strange air moving sound by my ear. I almost decided to investigate, but another cramp became prominent in my stomach and decided that I wasn't going to move any time soon. I pulled the blanket that someone had thrown on me up to my chin and rolled over, curling up into a ball to try and relieve as much of the pain as possible. Oh the joys of being female!

I was just about to fall back asleep when all of a sudden, something got on to the couch next to me and chose to crush my torso. All of the wind left me in one big whoosh and I coughed uncontrollably for a few seconds. I struggled to lift myself into a sitting position so I could try to pry off whatever was snoozing on me, but my arms are too weak to pass the push ups test at school, much less remove eighty pounds worth of... dog.

Well, it could've been worse.

Okay, I may not be a history buff, but I know for a fact that Abraham Lincoln did not bring his dog to the White House. Thanks to my awesome teacher, I knew that he left it with a friend's kids until he was done with his terms. But then the assassination happened and the dog died soon after. So unless I have severe memory loss, this animal that's crushing my lungs is not supposed to be here.

"Puppy!" I gasped and tried to push the huge yellow body off of me. "Puppy, I need you to get off!"

It raised its head and blinked at me with large, dark eyes and proceeded to lick my face. I attempted to shield myself from this oncoming attack by using my hand as a barrier, but it didn't work.

"Bleah! Puppy get off!"

It barked happily and wagged its tail, completely ignoring me. I let my head fall back against the arm of the sofa and stared at the elegant ceiling. Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge dog person, but I think that even the Dog Whisperer wouldn't like having a giant Lab on their stomach.

"Okay, Puppy, I'm going to ask you nicely one more time. Please get off."

As if it could really understand English.

I heard footsteps coming from the hallway and looked over to investigate, having to strain my head because I couldn't lift my body. As soon as I saw who it was, I immediately covered my head with the blanket. Oh no. There's not a way in the world that I could be that deprived of luck, right? Why oh why does life hate me so much? What in the world have I ever done to it?... Well, besides defy the Laws of Physics and travel back in time without causing a paradox.

O' the headaches I would give my Science teacher!

I knew that the person I'd seen in the hallway had come to stand next to me partly because of their shadow and partly because the dog barked again. The fact that it was a 'go away' kind of sound only confirmed my suspicions.

"Olivia?" A familiar voice asked. "Are you feeling better?"

I counted to five before throwing the blanket down to my ankles. Speed looked down at me, obviously trying not to laugh. Jeez, what is it with me and awkward awakenings, huh?

Through my embarrassment, I somehow managed to realize that the dog was still lying on my chest. I shifted my gaze from Speed to the Lab, who was staring at the shopkeeper with a confused head tilt.

Please let it bite his arm off. It would totally make my day.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I wheezed as a ginormous paw attacked my shoulder. "But could you get Fido here off of me?"

Speed offered a small smile and nodded, clapping his hands together and changing his tone from light to commanding.

"Fido, down!" He said and I flinched.

"His name is actually Fi- argh!"

Have you ever had a full sized yellow Lab stand up and jump down from your upper body? In case you haven't, I can tell you first hand that your chest itself feels like it got hit by a freight train and your lungs feel like they were put in a blender set to massacre. All in all, not a pleasant experience.

'Fido' (what an original name) scattered off down the hall with an excited yip, leaving me gasping for breath. Speed, who is not very good at covering laughter, coughed to the side and briefly turned around. I'm seriously starting to debate whether or not I should just be a comedian for the rest of my life. But even though I did take some pride in my awesome entertaining skills, I didn't really appreciate the fact that he was laughing at me, not with me.

"Shut up!" I exclaimed and swatted his hands away when he tried to help me up. He recoiled like a mouse would from a snake and the look on his face was priceless. "An' I can do this myself, ya ass, so get outta here!"

I took a deep breath as soon as I finished talking, realizing how harsh I'd sounded. Well can you really blame me? I'm in constant pain and feeling like the world hates me and everything is out to piss me off.

"I'm sorry," I said with a little more acknowledgment for his feelings. "I didn't mean to snap at you. I guess I'm just tired and stuff."

The shopkeeper waved a hand to show that it was unimportant and brushed his overly long hair behind his ear. I slowly swung my legs over the edge of the sofa and heaved myself up, only to be attacked by a massive cloud of shed fur. I frantically batted at the air, causing Speed to nearly double over with laughter once again. After emitting an enraged snarl, I flipped him off and deliberately stomped on his foot as hard as I could. He howled, still partly laughing, and cradled his injured limb in his hands.

I really, really hope that I broke some bones with that little performance.

"Why'd ya even walk over here anyway?" I asked as I attempted to control my appearance via a glass vase. "I mean, besides to see me suffer death by suffocation and humiliation."  
He held his arms to his chest in a 'who, me?' gesture and I narrowed my eyes.

Immediately, he got the hint and became serious.

"Information has been telegraphed here regarding some important events that are taking place in the South," he said and wiped some dog hair off of his suit. "Abe insists that he wants you to take part in the conversation."

Now it was my turn to stand there like a complete buffoon, mouth agape and eyes as wide as dinner plates. After everything that's happened, you'd think that the last person the President would want to consult with would be me. Not only have I told him to piss off and intruded on his home, I basically got his son murdered, judging by the fact that Vadoma was most likely after me in the first place.

"He does?"

"I believe that's what I said. Follow me."

I was mystified, so I did as I was told and trailed a few feet behind my official (I guess) best friend in this century as we walked down the hall. Servants and butlers scrambled about from room to room, heads bowed and faces solemn. A few stopped to stare at me and my weird clothes, eyebrows pulled together in confusion. One of the butlers even gave me the dirtiest look I've ever seen and I couldn't help but return it. He gasped and turned haughtily around on his heel, cold ice blue gaze nearly succeeding in freezing the walls.

Awkward.

"So I'm going to be apart of some top secret meeting?" I asked after the silence that was thick in the air nearly drove me insane.

"Correct. What is said in that room remains there, understood?"

"Sure."

How many fourteen year old girls can say that they've been involved in a political/military discussion with Abraham Lincoln? The last time I checked, not very many.

We reached the end of the hall and were face to face with a large oak door. Speed quickly rapped a couple times on it and it swung open, hinges creaking with the meagre effort. We walked in and one of the men in the all black suits that had taken away the little boy's body slammed it shut. Two of them then stood attentively on either side of the frame, hands buried in their coat pockets and probably gripping concealed pistols. Their expressions were carefully stoned and they were staring dead ahead, seemingly off into space.

Now I can add two more citizens to my list of 'People I Don't Want to End Up Like When I'm an Adult.'

Speed led me over to a large desk that Lincoln was leaning against and then stopped. Not that anyone else appeared to be much better, but the President looked absolutely awful. His face was haggard and frown lines made themselves more prominent against his forehead. If I didn't know any better, I would say that the starch in his suit was the only thing keeping him upright.

Henry had positioned himself at the other end of the desk and he looked up when we approached. I smiled softly and he nodded at me, shields back up since yesterday. Damn. This means I'm going to have to deal with the asshole side of him again.

"You wished to speak with us Abe?" Speed asked carefully, giving a Henry a fearful glance, as if he was afraid that the vampire would rip his head off if he said the wrong thing.

For the first time, Lincoln lifted his head and looked at us. I was nearly shocked to the point of tears when I saw how desolate his gaze was. However, when those same piercing eyes found mine, they actually lightened a little.

"I trust that you are feeling better, Miss Armstrong?" He asked with genuine concern.

"Much," I responded, completely touched. "Only needed a little rest."

I stopped just short of saying, "how about you?" I can't predict the future, but it doesn't take a genius to figure out that it would've ended in disaster. So thank goodness it didn't happen and we were able to actually get on with the discussion.

"A good friend of mine has been scouting in Richmond for weeks now and we've just gotten word that there is to be a large party held in Adam's plantation house," the President said and we all nodded, knowing that this information could be pivotal.

"And Will is sure?" Speed asked and, after receiving a confirmation from Lincoln, added, "Who is to be there?"

"Multiple Southern officers, colonels, Robert E. Lee, and Adam himself."

"And Vadoma?" Henry questioned, speaking up for the first time. As usual, his voice was dark, yet carefully restrained at the same time.

"As far as Will knows, Adam has sent her to the front lines to watch over the soldiers that have been turned."

I had absolutely no idea where the President was going with this, but I did know that a crazy, terrifying idea was slowly forming in my mind. Was it dangerous? Hells yeah. Could it possibly work if executed correctly? Again, hells yeah.

"So what do we do?" Speed asked, giving me the perfect opportunity to give my opinion.

"I've got an idea," I said quietly, barely resisting the urge to raise my hand instead of just talking.

Three heads swiveled toward me and I gulped and paled a little. I abhor public speaking to the very depths of its definition and it only makes it that much worse that I'm the only kid in the room.

Um... Yay?

"Tell us then," Speed said, folding his arms over his chest and leaning against the wall.

Words, do not fail me now!

"Well um, since there's going to be a ball and all those important people are going," I began, wringing my hands together restlessly. "There's probably going to be some battle plans being passed along. If we can get someone in there..."

I saw a light shine in Lincoln's eyes as he processed my idea. Slowly, he straightened out of his slouch and the frown lines vanished for a split second. But then it all came crashing down as a disturbing thought occurred to him.

"Each one of my men would be too easily recognized," he said. "I'm afraid that we wouldn't be able to get within a hundred paces of the building."

"No one would recognize me," I said, even more nervous than before. "I can get in. The only person who knows I'm here is Vadoma and if your information is correct, she won't even be there."

Two simultaneous responses of 'That is absolutely out of the question,' from Henry and Lincoln reached my ears before Speed's answer of 'Okay.' This earned him a murderous glare from the World's Biggest Jerk, a double take from me, and a thoughtful glance from the President.

"Tell me Speed," Lincoln said. "Why do you think this is a good idea?"

"For one, she's right. No one would know who she really is, much less suspect anything. If we say that she's a distant relative of one of the colonel's, a relative that not even he knows of, she'll be able to roam freely throughout the house and get what we desperately need."

Although it's nice to know that _someone_ in the room believes in me, I was actually kind of hoping that all three of them would shoot my outrageous plan down. But Lincoln had gained a calculating look on his face and was busily writing something on a piece of paper. The only person who hadn't jumped on the band wagon was Henry. With his arms folded tightly against his chest, he glared at me with his piercing brown eyes, most likely trying to dissuade me from going through with everything.

"If you think that you can change my mind, you've got another thing coming," I said as I walked over to stand next to him.

"Have you lost your mind?" He demanded, not loudly enough for the preoccupied Speed and Lincoln to hear.

"Probably and I don't miss it either."

It definitely wasn't the best time to be a smartass, but if it covered just how scared I actually was, then I would use it however much I could.

"Have you any idea what will happen if you're caught?"

"It's not that hard to guess. But it won't happen."

"Agreed... Because you're not going."

Like talking to a brick wall.

"So it's decided then," Lincoln said, totally interrupting our argument. "Miss Armstrong will go to the Ball come three days time and uncover any battle operations that she can find. I'll have Will get you an invitation."

One look at Henry told me that he was about two seconds away from protesting, but a glance filled with authority from the President shut him up, much to my surprise. Instead, he stormed out of the room, pushing past the astounded guards and slamming the door behind him. We all stared except for Lincoln, who just rolled his eyes and went back to work.

"He'll go along with it eventually," he said and Speed and I nodded.

"It's not like he has much of a choice," the shopkeeper said as he turned his eyes to the floor.

As much as I wanted to find Henry and try to beat some sense into him, I decided that it was probably best if I just left him alone for a while, give him some time to recuperate. Well that and I didn't want to have to deal with his horse's ass of a personality right at the moment.

And if my plans go poorly, I won't even get a chance.

* * *

**Sorry it took so long to update, my wifi was down and my typing app was malfunctioning and a whole bunch of other stuff. But, I hope you liked this chapter!**

**Stay tuned.**

**-Nopride**


	18. Time Is Not On My Side

**Hey everyone! So I was super happy this week from Wednesday on. Why? Because Green Day released ¡UNO!, the first disk of their new album trilogy! That really excited me and I just thought that I would share that with you all :)**

**Alexis: Happy birthday, my friend! I wish you the best of the best :) I'm also glad that you liked the last chapter so much. As for the rest of your awesome review, I cannot say...**

**Bohemian Anne: Hahaha I was wondering when someone was going to bring that up. That was a mistake I made. I've only seen the movie once, so I set it in Washington DC and then realized that a great deal of it was in Springfield. So sorry about that. Hope you liked the rest of the fic though!**

**Crazyblonde13: My dog is huge as well and I love her to pieces lol. She's at least sixty pounds, but she thinks she's a lap dog lol :)**

**RTVampireKilljoy: Hahaha undercover is always fun :) Hope you enjoy!**

**Supernatural Fan: Haha glad that you liked the dog part too. Here's the next chapter for ya!**

**Note: Bohemian Anne brought up a really good point about a mistake I made. If you ever see a major or minor mistake in any of the chapters (spelling, setting, content, etc) let me know :)**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_As much as I wanted to find Henry and try to beat some sense into him, I decided that it was probably best if I just left him alone for a while, give him some time to recuperate. Well that and I didn't want to have to deal with his horse's ass of a personality right at the moment._

_And if my plans go poorly, I won't even get a chance._

* * *

Now

My day did not get off to a good start.

First off, I learned that Adam's plantation house is not in Virginia and we would have to go all the way down to South Carolina. To make things worse, we had to cover all three hundred and forty seven miles by horseback. And because he was still mad at me, Henry made sure that I was not allowed to travel buddy system with him, Speed, or Lincoln. So that's why I was stuck on a horse a million miles above the ground with nothing to hold on to should it decided it wanted to kill me.

He's just an awesome friend, isn't he?

When we finally arrived in good ol' SC, the real horrors started. Since he's the president, Lincoln practically had an entire army with him throughout the trip and they would not leave me alone. I put my hand in my pocket, they thought I was pulling out a gun. I bent down to tie my boot lace, they expected a knife to appear in my hands. I could barely walk alone into the woods to use the bathroom without having at least one of them follow me.

Finally Lincoln called them off, saying that I was no threat. A brief part of me wondered if he'd waited so long just to watch how it would play out. Not that it surprised me, but I still expected more from the freaking President of the United States. I guess all men revert back to children eventually.

Out of the whole travel group, Speed was the only one who seemed to fully support me. He repeatedly prepped me for the task that was ahead, unlike Henry and Lincoln, who tried to talk me out of it... Again... and again... and again. Nothing they said worked, however; I was absolutely unperturbed and actually looking forward to my little Mission Impossible assignment.

That is until it came time to actually get ready for everything.

I should've known that something was up when Mrs. Lincoln and four of her handmaidens came along with us without even a minuscule protest from her husband. The fact that they were carrying handbags and boxes filled with unknown items should've tipped me off even more. But me being the oblivious to common sense person I am, I didn't think anything of it and continued on my merry way. I guess I figured that the still grieving woman felt safer around us than she would at the White House by herself.

My innocent assumption was shattered around five PM, three hours before the ball started. Everyone was relaxing and sitting by the fire Henry had started (except for the guards of course) when one of the maids whispered something into Mrs. Lincoln's ear. She nodded and told me that it was time to get ready. I thought that she'd just meant I had to get into the fancy dress they'd brought for me, so I consented. What they had in mind was much worse than I'd imagined.

I was put almost forcefully into a chair in a tent that we'd set up. Well, more like the men set up. I stood with the other women and helped them with the directing. Basically, I just said 'a little to the left' when it seemed necessary.

As soon as they closed the curtains, I knew that my definition of 'getting ready' was completely different than theirs. A quick glance around the room revealed tubs of water, a hair brush and thousands of pins, one of those scrubby things for the dead skin on your heels, and many closed boxes. When one of the women pulled out a nail clipper with a matching file, I started to freak out.

Which brings us to now.

"This isn't what the phrase 'getting ready' brings to my mind," I said and Mrs. Lincoln smiled.

"Honestly Miss Armstrong, the way you're acting, you'd think that we're trying to kill you," she said and grabbed the file as she walked toward me.

If you haven't guessed already, I'm not exactly the girliest person in the world and I can count on one hand all the times I've used makeup or painted my nails. Some people think that the rack would be a horrific form of torture. For me, the second I become someone's doll, reality transforms into the Grudge or any other scary movie. That's why I marvel at the fact that I don't have an older sister who would try to practice her beauty skills on me.

"Watch it lady!" I nearly yelled as one of the maids grabbed my left hand and examined the fingertips.

"These callouses will simply not do," she said, completely ignoring me and talking over my head to Mrs. Lincoln. "They'll suspect her for a commoner in no time at all."

"What should we do, Eliza?" Another woman asked from where she was preparing ribbons and other schmancy fabrics.

"Well, we could always grate them off..."

"No!" I exclaimed. "No no no no no hells no!"

Every single person in the tent stared at me like i'd lost my mind. I don't know why though; I'm not the one saying that grating someone's fingers is actually acceptable behavior.

"Look look," I said. "Why don't I just wear gloves, huh? It's easy and we don't have to waste time on the nails."

Only when the files and clippers were tucked away in a sealed box did I let out a sigh of relief. But that didn't mean the situation was over. No on the invisible checklist I kept in my mind, we still had hair, feet, and the outfit to do.

_Let the torture begin..._

* * *

"Do you think Abe will be alright?" Speed asked, voice barely above a murmur as he stared into the large flames of the fire.

He glanced carefully to the right to see Henry ignoring him as he usually did. A familiar surge of irritation welled up in the shopkeeper's chest and he breathed a deep sigh. Leave it to Abraham to choose the most antagonistic man on the planet as a friend.

"Typical," he muttered and went back to staring at the flames.

Henry rolled his eyes and leaned against the trunk of a fallen tree as he contemplated Speed's question. Almost immediately, he began to recall a conversation he'd had with Miss Armstrong nearly two months ago when she'd first arrived. He remembered that somehow his wife and her friend had been mentioned and she'd told him how to deal with grief. It shouldn't have made sense; he's nearly two centuries old and a girl who's practically a kid gave him advice. But for some reason, it made perfect sense and what she'd said had actually helped.

Maybe she wasn't as childish as they all thought.

"It never gets any easier," he said after a while and the shopkeeper started.

"What?"

"Dealing with death. But what else can you do?"

Before Speed could respond, Olivia ran out of the tent while screaming at the top her lungs,

"Get the hell away from me! There's no way I'm doing that! F off bitches!"

Henry watched with a slight smirk on his face as one of the guards grabbed her by the shoulders and began to tow her back to the astounded Mrs. Lincoln. All the while, the young girl cursed and struggled futilely to break free from the man's iron grasp. One of the women walked over, carrying a hair brush in her hands and trying hard not to laugh. The guard transferred Olivia to the two women and they disappeared inside the tent once more.

When everything was quiet, Speed turned his attention back to the still smiling vampire.

"How many times is that?" He asked, careful to avoid the look that came his way in case it was full of darkness.

"Three."

Surprisingly, the tone was light and seemingly... happy.

"She's really something, isn't she?" The shopkeeper asked fondly, glancing back over at the tent where more curses were being shouted.

"She's gone mad."

Speed laughed a little, but then grew serious as a troubling thought suddenly occurred to him.

"This plan of hers," he began and nearly lost his nerve as a glare hit him.

"Yes?"

"Well... I don't know how much of an actress she is. What if they catch her?"

"We'll kill them before that happens."

"And how do you suggest we do that? You know that it'll be impossible to get within a yard of the place."

"I know."

Two words said so much. At that moment, Speed realized that Henry had been formulating a plan the whole time; he had absolutely no intention of letting Miss Armstrong go through with everything alone.

Before he could say anything, the girl rushed out of the tent again, screaming the same profanity laced words as before. The shopkeeper turned around and watched with a smile as the guards once again brought her back to Mrs. Lincoln.

"Four."

* * *

**Right, I know that this chapter is short, but it's leading up to the party, which is going to be quite long. I hope you liked what I wrote though :) I tried to add a bit of comic relief. Let me know if I need to change or add anything. **

**Until next time,**

**-Nopride **


	19. Incognito: Part One

**Hey everyone and welcome back. Here is the ever exciting party episode and I must say that I did have a lot of fun writing it. Anyways, enjoy!  
**

**Disclaimer: See previous chapters.  
**

**Alexis: Haha I am quite evil, aren't I? Lol jk jk, glad that you liked the humor :) Here's the next chapter!  
**

**Alisialy: Nine times you say? *changes words in story* we'll see... Lol Olivia does seem to have a complete inability to keep her mouth shut, doesn't she?  
**

**Crazyblonde13: I always liked moving houses because it seemed like an adventure to me when I was little. As for the air mattress, I'm sorry. Those can either be really comfortable or really painful.  
**

**Edowen: Haha it was very fun to write her screaming like maniac lol. Hope you like this chapter!  
**

**In Pieces: No worries for the 'hit and run' thing :) And thank you so much for your awesome review! Really appreciate it.  
**

**Julie Winchester: Glad that you thought it was funny :) And for the rest of the review, all I can say is patience my friend.  
**

**Supernatural Fan: Glad you enjoyed it. OMC Supernatural started! What did you think of the premier! I thought it was quite awesome! :)  
**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil...**  
**_

_Two words said so much. At that moment, Speed realized that Henry had been formulating a plan the whole time; he had absolutely no intention of letting Miss Armstrong go through with everything alone.  
_

_Before he could say anything, the girl rushed out of the tent again, screaming the same profanity laced words as before. The shopkeeper turned around and watched with a smile as the guards once again brought her back to Mrs. Lincoln.  
_

_"Four."_**  
**

* * *

Now

I stared at myself in the grand mirror that Mrs. Lincoln and her handmaidens had set up for me. The girl in it did not look like my normal self at all. First off, the skin was all wrong; I'm naturally pale, but that doesn't mean I'm frigging albino. However, with all the powder these ladies caked on me, you wouldn't know that. Second, they'd curled my now medium length brown hair and put it up in an up-do with a few loose, wispy strands hanging down.

The last thing, the outfit, was the worst.

Have you ever had the wind knocked out of you, typically when you landed on your back after a fall? Well, that's how it felt when two of the maidens put a corset around my upper body and pulled the strings as tight as they possibly could. My already slim waist shrunk until I practically looked like a coatrack... Okay, maybe not exactly like one, but you get the point.

Then they put on the schmancy dress that was a lovely pinkish-white and I couldn't help but complain about the scratchy material. The fact that I was about to keel over from asphyxiation only made the situation worse. Not only that, but the shoes that I had to wear were lacy and uncomfortable.

Sometimes, I hate myself for having the ability to speak.

"I do say, Miss Armstrong," Mrs. Lincoln exclaimed. "You look absolutely astounding."

"I can't breathe!" I gasped, exaggerating just a tad bit in an attempt to get them to loosen the corset.

"That's perfectly natural," she said and I just gaped at her. "It should pass in an hour along with the lightheadedness."

Instead of wasting my precious oxygen on talking to those jerks, I wrenched open the door thing to the tent and walked outside.

Oh, you wouldn't know how much I regretted that one simple action.

I absolutely abhor being the center of attention, so you can imagine my discomfort when about sixty heads turned in my direction. I came within an inch of walking back inside and being at the mercy of the women, but I guess I decided that I should just go with the lesser of the two evils.

Mr. Lincoln was the first one to approach me and he did so cautiously, probably because he'd seen my many escape attempts. He smiled, age and stress hardened eyes softening considerably and I couldn't help but return it. If it's something that I've noticed, it's that the President has an interesting effect on people; if he smiles, you have to as well. If he's upset, you are too. For some reason, I think that he knows it and I can't decide whether or not he views it as a curse or a gift.

Once he moved out of the way and went in the tent to visit his wife, I could clearly see Speed sitting across from Henry and staring at me. When I say staring, I mean with his mouth dropped open so wide that all the insects flying around us probably thought it was a cavern. Henry was reading a book and he looked up when he noticed that Speed was acting even weirder than normal. His reaction at my total transformation from un-classy to freaking royalty was more contained than Speed's, which I was thankful for. I walked over to the two of them, carefully placing my feet so I wouldn't trip and make a complete dumb-ass of myself.

"If you stare any longer, I'm gonna punch you," I hissed angrily and sat down on a fallen tree, not caring that I was probably getting the dress dirty. There's no way I'm going to stand for the next two hours until the party starts.

"And it is exactly that attitude that proves to me that this will not end in disaster," Henry sarcastically said, rolling his eyes at my hostile mood. Well, I have every right to be mean. I didn't see him getting tortured by a bunch of psychopathic women.

"Your faith in me is overpowering."

Translation: two can play this game buddy, so shut your trap.

"You do look wonderful, Olivia," Speed said, obviously changing the subject... sort of.

"I'm sorry, do you want me to kick you?" I asked with fake curiosity, angrily turning my glare to him. "Because stand up and I'll be glad to."

He wisely took that as an invitation to stop talking, but Henry didn't.

"Do you have the slightest idea how you're going to pass for a woman of rank?" He asked and I raised my eyebrows.

Jeez man, might as well stab me in the frigging heart.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I said defensively and Speed pulled at the collar of his shirt, muttering a barely audible 'oh no' under his breath.

I was too pissed at the vampire next to me to start yelling at the shopkeeper, so I ignored him.

"It means that you won't fool anyone, the way you're acting," the vampire said, voice in a state of weird calm anger.

"Oh BS! Give me one... Give me two examples about how my personality isn't 'suitable for this time period!'"

"The nine times you tried to run away from Mrs. Lincoln."

"It was _seven_!" I exclaimed, but then realized that I wasn't helping myself. "And that's only _one_ example!"

He looked at me as if to convey, 'need I say more?' and I folded my arms.

"Assbutt," I muttered under my breath, completely forgetting that he could hear me and I was only proving to him more that I wasn't going to be able to do this. "And don't look at me like that! Despite what you may think, I'm not stupid! I know that I'll have to act all classy once I get there. You just gotta trust me."

Speed, who had been keeping his opinion to himself this entire time, finally decided to speak up.

"For the love of God, will you both be quiet?" He exclaimed in an alarmingly loud manner.

"If she doesn't go to this party and recover the information, the North could lose this war. Do either of you want that?"

Well that put an end to the argument pretty quickly. I stood and went to go chat with one of the soldiers who couldn't have been more than sixteen (so maybe there is a good side to being dressed up all pretty and stuff) and Henry and Speed went back to whatever it was they were doing before I interrupted.

For the next two hours, our little group stayed for the most part separated. I enjoyed my long conversation with the cute soldier boy (who's name I found out was Alex) and everyone else went about their business. When it finally came time to leave for the party, I began to have second thoughts. It's not that I was scared how it would work out, it's just that we had to _walk_ three freaking miles. That may not sound too bad, but try attempting it with uncomfortable shoes and a long dress that wants to kill you.

And also try it when your asshole vampire friend is giving you the silent treatment instead of helpful advice that could be crucial to the whole operation. Then you can talk to me about pain.

"So Adam," I said as I jogged (clumsily) to catch up to Speed. There's no way I'm going to this party completely blind. "You've met the guy before. What's he like?"

"Dangerous," the Shopkeeper said, a scared glint in his eyes. "But he gives off a charming impression, so be careful."

"How will I know which one he is?"

"You'll know. If for some reason his identity eludes you, he'll be the one drinking the red liquid."

Eew.

"What if they're drinking red wine?"

"First lesson in the rules of etiquette, Olivia: Champaign is served at parties."

Now this is the sort of info that I need.

"Got any more pointers?"

"Excuse me?"

"Tips?"

"I don't follow."

"Just give me more information about being classy you son of a bitch!"

He blinked, astounded and then glared at me. Thankfully, he managed to overlook my mean comment and started to give some advice.

"When you meet someone, always address them by their last name. First names are informal and you'll get caught for sure."

"Okay, got it. What next?"

"If a man offers you a drink, either politely decline it or have the bartender pour it for you."

"Yup, my dad told me the same thing for when I turn twenty-one."

"Alright. If someones asks you to dance, say yes no matter what."

"What? But I can't dance!"

It's the honest truth too. Whenever Jimmy's parents used to make him go to a ballroom dance class (don't ask, they were weird), I always got stuck going with him. I found out during those experiences that I have two left feet and more than once stepped on people's toes by accident.

"Just follow what everyone else does," Speed said, shaking his head in a 'I knew this was a bad idea' gesture.

And that totally set my nerves on edge for the rest of the walk. When we finally got to the plantation house, staying in the tree line for cover, I was practically shaking in my unfashionable shoes. The soldiers set up a makeshift camp and put all sorts of ammunition and emergency weapons along different places. However, I kept noticing that they didn't put the loaded guns on the high ground (not that the ground was high to begin with, but there was a slight slope) and instead stayed low.

"You should put those up a ways," I said to Alex, who was loading his musket. He looked up, blue eyes light and comical.

"With all due respect, Miss Armstrong," he said and adjusted his kepi. "I'm a trained soldier and I believe that I know where to stash the weapons."

Translation: You're a girl and don't know jack about the military.

"My father's a colonel out west," I lied. "An' I got five older brothers. Trust me, I think I've heard enough to have a pretty good idea on how it works."

Well, I don't have _five_ older brothers, I have _one_ and my dad is certainly no colonel. But I have watched every single history movie, from the Patriot to Glory to the Story of Us. I know nearly every strategy Washington and Grant used, as well as some "new" ones from the fictional movies.

So no kid who's only two years older than me is going to tell me what I do and don't know about the army.

"You gotta space em' out," I said and angled my arms to show where they should go. "Place them on the slope in a zigzag kind of pattern, one lower one higher... like how you position checkers on the board."

He stared at me, a retort ripe on his lips, but someone came up behind him and a dark shadow fell over his somewhat short frame. I stifled a groan as I realized that it was Henry, most likely there to take Alex's side and further prove his point that i'm not suitable for a mission like this. What actually happened came as a total surprise.

"I would trust her judgement, lad," he said and the only thing I could do was stare like an idiot.

"But sir," Alex began and Henry raised his eyebrows, effectively silencing him.

"She knows what she's doing. Tell your Commanding Officer to change the positions."

For a moment, my future 1800s boyfriend just stood there, debating whether or not trying to tell Henry off would be worth it.

"That's an order!" The vampire snapped and Alex jumped, immediately heading toward one of the Officers.

"Thanks... I guess," I said with a smile. "I didn't know that you had military authority."

He returned my smile and clasped his hands behind his back.

"I don't."

And then the tone was suddenly very, very serious.

"Are you positive that you can do this?" He asked, voice neutral but eyes revealing the slightest trace of concern.

Aw.

"Yuppers," I said and then realized that I needed to correct myself. "I mean yes. Let's get this show on the road!"

"Alright. Will has managed to obtain a Confederate uniform and your _friend_, Alex, has agreed to be your escort."

It was impossible not to detect the emphasis he put on the word 'friend.' Jeez. I talk to one cute boy and all of a sudden, the World's Biggest Jerk gets all protective. I can't decide whether to go 'aw' again or 'ugh.'

Two minutes later, I was standing directly on the path to the plantation house next to Alex. He linked his arm through mine and we walked toward the grand building, dreading each step that brought us closer. Before I would be in sight of the vampires that were surely flocking the premises, I turned around and briefly waved to the seemingly empty tree line. I couldn't see it, but I'm sure that Lincoln, Speed, and Henry waved back.

"You ever done anything like this before?" I asked and Alex laughed nervously.

"No and I don't think you have either."

"Actually when I was eleven, I spied on my brother when he invited his date over to the house for a mov... dinner. He hated me for a week."

"I'm sure he did. Do you know the plan?"

"Yeah. You'll be the mingling husband/fiancé who talks about politics and blah blah blah. Meanwhile, I'll be snooping around because no one will be expecting the wife to be the spy."

"Yes. Mr. President also said that he would attempt to have some other soldiers get in posing as servants if it's not too dangerous."

"Oh trust me buddy; we're on our own."

We reached the front door and a man in a crisp black uniform greeted us.

"Invitations please," he said and Alex pulled our phony 'license' from his Confederate coat pocket.

"Here you are sir."

"Ah, Mr. Cunningham," the butler said. "It's a pleasure. Please do come in."

The door swung open and my fake husband and I stepped into the most terrifying night of our lives.

* * *

**I decided to split the party up into two chapters because it was just so much material and I want to keep the suspense as well :)**

**Just as a side note, this will NOT be an OC/OC story, so you have nothing to worry about of that sort.**

**So what havoc will Olivia wreak during the party? Tune in next week and find out :)**

**Anyways, I hope you liked this chapter and sorry that this took so long to update. Until next time,**

**-Nopride**


	20. Incognito: Part Two

**Hello everyone! Sorry for the late Sunday updates recently. School's just been a killer lately (tests, assignments, etc.) and it's kinda hard to write when I have absolutely no free time. I know it's later than usual this time, but I had to study for a physics test and I had to watch the Walking Dead. But that being said, no more complaining and on with the chapter!**

**Alexis: You are just not a fan of my cliffhangers, are you? :) lol I'm glad that you like Alex. I figured that this fic could use another character to spice things up a bit.**

**Alisialy: Your predictions sound very reasonable, very reasonable indeed haha. And I'm glad you liked my reference to the nine times thing :) Thank you so much for putting this on your favorites list! It means a lot to me!**

**Boyishanimeweirdofreak: Welcome back my friend! I'm glad that Olivia isn't becoming a Mary Sue. Thank you for the title! You have no idea how good that makes me feel :)**

**Crazyblonde13: Haha the 1800s boyfriend part made me laugh as well. As for starting a new school, all I can say is it gets better. Being the new kid is never fun, but it is sort of exciting :)**

**In Pieces: Alex is becoming quite popular it seems :) I can tell you that he will have a significant role in part 2. Enjoy!**

**Supernatural Fan: As much as I felt bad for Dean, my heart personally went out to Kevin. Poor kid. And I too refuse to believe that Cas is gone. Long live Castiel! Haha glad you liked the last chapter and I hope that this one is just as good, if not better.**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_We reached the front door and a man in a crisp black uniform greeted us._

_"Invitations please," he said and Alex pulled our phony 'license' from his Confederate coat pocket._

_"Here you are sir."_

_"Ah, Mr. Cunningham," the butler said. "It's a pleasure. Please do come in."_

_The door swung open and my fake husband and I stepped into the most terrifying night of our lives._

* * *

Now

The first alarm that went off in my head was the fact that the door immediately shut behind Alex and I.

Barely resisting the urge to turn around and run, I held my fake husband's arm a little tighter and took a deep, deep breath. Alex looked down at me, blue eyes just as frightened as the malachite in mine, and offered a reassuring smile. With it came the knowledge that I'm not completely alone in this and that gave me the confidence to stop burning holes in the floor and look at my surroundings.

All about me glorious, elegant people were dancing, laughing, and drinking. The men were wearing Confederate uniforms and I swear on my life that there were maybe ten who were over five foot eight. Suddenly, I didn't feel so small anymore and it was actually me who tugged Alex further into the humongous ball room. You can accuse me of being brainwashed by Hollywood all you want, but I seriously expected these high class military-vampire bigwigs to be freaking giants. Instead, I was greeted with people out of Kindergarten Monthly.

Speaking of which, one of the elite Officers noticed the two of us standing there uncomfortably and he wattled his fat little body in our direction. He stopped about a foot away and looked to Alex.

"Good evening, sir," he said with a slight bow and I took an immediate disliking to him. Imagine someone with a really plugged nose and you'll sort of get an idea of what he sounded like. "I am Norman McHearthan. To whom do I have the pleasure of getting to know this fine hour?"

Alex's calloused left hand twitched like it was dying to pull at his collar and he swallowed almost noticeably.

"Allow myself to introduce... myself," he said and I barely stifled a groan. "My name is Richard Cunningham and this is my fiancée..."

For all the preparation we underwent, we completely forgot to think of a fake name for me.

Oh aren't we just freaking brilliant?

"Anna," I said quickly in an attempt to cover my future boyfriend's nervousness. "Anna Milton. It's wonderful to meet you Mr. McHearthan."

Well what do ya know? I can be pretty damn polite when the situation calls for it.

The stuffy Norman McHearthan simply nodded his head in dismissal at me and turned his attention to the bar in the back of the room. Part of my non 1800s suitable self felt irritated at his lack of cordiality, but the other part was extremely relieved. So far, so good. I haven't caused us to get our throats ripped out yet so I guess I must be doing something right.

"Thank you, Miss Armstrong," Alex said quietly in my ear so that he wouldn't be overheard by the vampires who'd gone incognito. "I was afraid that I would destroy our cover there."

"No problemo baby," I said and mentally cursed my inability to talk properly. "I mean you're welcome. Now let's get what we came here for and then make like a tree and leave."

Before we could even take two steps forward, one of the many servants in a dark black suit roughly hit Alex's shoulder on his way back to what I presumed to be the kitchen. I turned around to glare at him, only to find that he'd completely disappeared.

"Bastard," I hissed and my fake husband coughed to cover a laugh.

For about two hours of the evening, the only thing we did was talk to people who seemed so full of themselves that I thought they would explode. They lifted their noses in the air and fluttered their eyelids with every sentence, usually within the first three words. It took all I had not to punch each one of them in their stuck up, stuffy faces. Alex, however, seemed to blend right in. He laughed at jokes I didn't find funny at all and he was even disregarding my existence completely by the time the huge grandfather clock struck eleven. That's why I ended up in a chair all by myself, a handful of cookies buried in the concealing fabrics of my dress.

Jeez, this is even worse than the time when no one wanted to dance with me at the Eighth Grade graduation party my school held.

While my self esteem was taking a total nose dive, I somewhat enviously watched the 'happy' couples dancing to the music of a beautiful concerto. Despite being punk and completely unable to not step on people's feet, I want to be asked to dance as much as the next girl. But seeing as though I'm incompatible with the entire human race, it's nothing more than a pipe dream.

That is until a gentle, not calloused hand gently held my chin and tilted my face toward the ceiling.

Hol-y crap.

"Excuse me for my rather sudden introduction, Miss," a man with a charming smile and kind eyes said. "But it would seem awfully rude to let you sit here for the rest of the night. How about a dance?"

In the year 2012, every single person in the room would be screaming '_Pedophile! Someone call 911_!' But since I'm not in the 21st Century and I'm also supposed to be freaking twenty years old, no one noticed a thing.

I really didn't want to blow my cover, so what else could I do but agree? The man smiled and we walked over to where many people were whirling around in a waltz like thing. I took Speed's advice and copied what they were doing and surprisingly, I didn't stumble at all.

"I don't believe I've seen you around these parts before," the man said as he looked down at me, causing me to realize that he was one of the only ones there that was at least 5'9. "What's your name?"

"Anna," I said, absently staring over his shoulder and searching for Alex. "Anna Milton. My fiancé just got promoted to Colonel in California and we had to move out to South Carolina so he could receive command of his troops."

As we were talking, I repeated a mantra in my head: _don't blab, don't stumble. Don't blab, don't stumble._

"Interesting. Who may I ask is your husband-to-be?"

"Richard Cunningham... He should be somewhere around here."

Oh he was there alright; I could see him standing next to some poor guys wife and totally flirting with her.

Bastard.

The man with the dark hair glanced to the side and then directed his charismatic attention back to me.

"You seem quite young to be getting married."

Balls! Why couldn't I have been sent back in time after I turned at least sixteen?

"Yeah, people say that a lot. I look younger than I really am."

Oh please let him believe me. Please please please!

"My apologies, Miss," he said and smiled slightly. But despite this action, I didn't miss the brief flash of doubt that shot through his blueish-gray eyes.

Things were silent for a few moments after that. When I looked over the mysterious man's shoulder to try and find my fake husband again, I saw one of the servants, the same one that had hit his arm, leaning casually against the wall and staring intently at me. I couldn't see his face because the brim of a formal top hat was pulled down in a concealing, but not conspicuous manner. He balanced a tray of champaign glasses expertly on his fingertips, nodding his head ever so slightly whenever a guest took one. Other than those simple movements, he didn't budge an inch.

Weird.

I didn't even notice that the music ended until the Mystery Man stopped dancing. Consequently, I did as well and we all turned and clapped for the orchestra. I tried to keep my hands from shaking as much as I possibly could, but that soon became difficult when I saw the scratches on the Mystery Man's shoes.

I'm an even worse dancer than I thought.

"Thank you, sir," I said, trying to play it off. "I would've been by myself for the whole night if you hadn't shown up."

He bowed and kissed my gloved hand, causing me to cringe and blush at the same time.  
'_He thinks I'm older, he thinks I'm older. This is considered polite in the 1800s,_' I mentally chanted and my eyes caught sight of the strange servant once more. He was not leaning against the wall this time and there was certainly nothing casual about his posture. The hand that wasn't balancing the tray was clenched in a fist at his side and I could see the tensing of his jaw beneath the hat. He took two steps forward, seemed to think of something, and then moved back just as the Mystery Man stepped slightly away from me.

"It would've been rude of me to leave you there," he said, startling my gaze away from the servant. "It's my duty as host of this ball to make sure every one of my guests are enjoying themselves."

Well that little revelation went over like a ton of bricks for me. Irritatingly, I couldn't start hyperventilating right then without risking getting found out, which meant I had to play it cool.

If you haven't noticed, that's not really something I'm good at.

"I was wondering if we'd get to see you," I said in my most nonchalant voice. "Richard has been excited all evening."

Adam smiled and I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. Thankfully, he dismissed the action as shy instead of nervous and I was able to breathe again.

"Well then, I suppose I should be going. Have a nice night, Miss Milton."

I seriously hope that he didn't hear my sigh of relief as he walked away. I made my way over to the closest wall and proceeded to lean against it, heart beating in my throat. Not only had I just danced (poorly) with the leader of the freaking vampiric empire, I was also seriously about to faint.

Speed had been right; Adam _was_ scarily charming.

When I knew that I wasn't going to throw up or pass out, I carefully looked up, only to find that I was standing directly next to a door that I hadn't seen all night.

Well hell-o discovery!

A glance around the room revealed that I was in no position to attempt to slip away. In all of the action-spy movies that I've seen, this is usually when the protagonist asks his friend to create a distraction.

Time to find Alex.

Scanning the crowd took a lot longer than I'd hoped it would and by the time I finally succeeded in locating him, it was almost midnight. He was still flirting with that same red headed ditzy woman from before and I felt rage boil up in my chest. He's supposed to be helping me, not trying to convince a hopeless girl to abandon her stuffy husband and run away to Rainbow Land with him.

"Darling," I said and grabbed his arm a little more forcefully than what seemed to be necessary. "Could I speak with you for a moment alone?"

He pushed his dark brown hair out of his eyes and threw the red head a wink before accompanying me to a secluded corner of the room.

"Yesh, my love?" he slurred and I groaned.

He's. Frigging. _Plastered_.

"How much did you have to drink?" I hissed and steadied him as he stumbled to the right.

"Jus' a few of em' champaigners," he said, but the glassy look in his eyes sang a different tune.

I rubbed my temples and shook my head disapprovingly, suddenly wishing that i'd swallowed my pride and allowed Henry to escort me while wearing a disguise or something.

"Yous seem upsets," my fake husband's drunken voice said and I swatted his hand away from my face.

"Never mind that!" I exclaimed, remembering at the last second to keep my voice relatively quiet. "I need you to do something for me."

"What's ish its?"

"Can you make a distraction that's long enough for me to slip through that door over there?"

He looked up at the ceiling as if he were in deep thought before looking back at me, a smile on his lips.

"Yesh."

"Good. Now remember something."

He looked away and I grabbed his arms so he would return his attention back to my burning eyes.

"Alex, listen to me very carefully. Do not, I repeat, do _not_ mention my name at all. I don't care if it's Anna or Olivia. Whatever you do, don't bring it up. The last thing we need is for people to start suspecting things."

He nodded to show he understood and I quietly made my way back to the nearly hidden door. For some odd reason, I glanced around in an attempt to find the strange servant that had seemed angry at Adam, only to conclude that he was nowhere in sight. I saw Alex take his position in the center of the room and felt something flutter in my stomach. This is really happening.

No turning back.

"HEY! YOU!" The drunken voice rang out and the stuffy nosed Mr. McHearthan turned around.

"Me?" He asked, holding his hands to his chest in a questionable manner.

"YES YOU, YOU ROTTEN OL' BLOKE! YOU STOLE MY BLOODY MONEY!"

I watched for about five more seconds until I was absolutely positive that every single head had swiveled in Alex's direction. With a strong feeling of gratitude, I pushed open the door (which was surprisingly unlocked) and quickly shut it behind me.

A long, dark stairwell that went up to the second floor greeted my wide, frightened eyes. I took a deep breath and released it slowly, scared that if I even made slightest noise the vampires would come and eat me like something out of the Lost Boys.

"Okay, you can do this," I whispered once I'd talked myself out of my paranoia. "Nut up or shut up, nut up or shut up."

I gently took the first step, which received my foot with an incredibly audible creek. I grimaced and moved on to the second step, which had the same reaction as the one before it. Biting my lip near to the point of drawing blood, I ran up the rest as fast as I could, ignoring the many groans and screams behind me. When I reached the hall at the top, I leaned against the wooden wall and struggled to calm myself down.

"No one's here. They're all down below... I can do this."

It was that second mantra of the night that enabled me to get off of my scared ass and actually walk deeper into the lion's den. Bedrooms flanked both sides of the hallway and I internally wondered if going up here was going to end up being a huge waste of time.

Just as I was about to turn around, something in the last room on the right caught my eye. I frowned and walked closer, eventually seeing that the object was a large midnight trunk with a padlock on it. Without even bothering to look for a key (which would've saved me from the trouble and a hell of a lot of pain), I ripped one of the hair pins from my head and tried my hand at lock picking.

Rest assured, it's a lot harder than it looks in the movies.

By the time I finally succeeded in getting the stupid thing open, my hair was hanging down in my face and I was constantly spitting it out of my mouth. I carefully pushed it behind my ears and lifted the heavy lid to the trunk until I could see what was inside.

Sheet after sheet of paper greeted me and with hands that shook nearly uncontrollably, I took out the most recently dated ones.

_May 4, 1863_

_Mr. Booth,_

_Eliminate when ready._

Immediately, I felt as if the wind had been knocked out of me and I had to kneel away from trunk in order to not throw up. When the queasiness in my stomach passed, I forced myself to take one last look at the paper with today's date.

_June 10, 1863_

_Silver on train stop June 16 1863 stop Will be guarded stop_

_-Washington DC_

_Informant: Mr. Joshua Speed._

Before I could even decide what I was going to do next, a dark voice spoke from somewhere behind me.

"You're not supposed to be in here."

There was a sharp pain on my left temple and I collapsed to the ground...

And then everything went dark.

* * *

**Uh oh, Olivia found out more than she should've :o Tune in next week to see what happens!**

**-Nopride**


	21. No Rest For The Wicked

**Hello all! This week has been a no good very bad one; Just a case of strep throat and the ever popular I-Don't-Want-to-Go-to-School feeling. But reading all of your wonderful reviews has made me feel much better :) Anyways, enough of me complaining and on with the fic!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own this book/movie. All credit goes to the author.**

**Alexis: You don't have to apologize for a long review; I love them! I'm sorry for the cliffhangers, but what can I say? They're extremely fun to write! Also glad that you liked Alex getting drunk. I figured that the chapter could use a bit of humor and it seemed like the perfect scenario. **

**Alisialy: I can guarantee that cursing is definitely in Olivia's immediate future :) Alex seems to be quite the popular character. I originally intended for him to just be another face in the crowd, but now he's sorta grown on me as well...**

**Bloody-kick-ass: I'm glad that you like this! Haha people really seem to want romance between Olivia and Henry. All I can say is just wait :)**

**Crazyblonde13: Glad that being the new kid wasn't too bad :) Here's the next chapter for ya!**

**Edowen: Oh yes, she's gotten herself into some very deep s- lol. As for how it turns out, you'll just have to read and see for yourself :)**

**EnglishEyebrows: Yay another Supernatural fan! Thank you so much for your review and I hope you enjoy this chapter. **

**Ginebra: Haha I am quite evil :) Here's the next update!**

**In Pieces: Thank you for wishing me luck on my test :) I don't want to jinx it, but I think I did well haha. Anyways, I felt that Olivia dancing with Adam had to end up happening lol. Here you go!**

**Supernatural Fan: Didn't know that you watch the Walking Dead too! Man, I was on the edge of my seat for practically the whole episode lol :) Anyways, here's the next update!**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_Before I could even decide what I was going to do next, a dark voice spoke from somewhere behind me._

_"You're not supposed to be in here."_

_There was a sharp pain on my left temple and I collapsed to the ground..._

_And then everything went dark._

* * *

_A Flash Forward..._

_"All I want to know is why. Why did you wait so freaking long?"_

_"..."_

_"That's what I thought... It's good to see you again, Jackass."_

* * *

Now

Alex leaned against the wall, holding an ice filled cloth to his swelling left eye. Although his distraction had enabled Miss Armstrong to successfully sneak away from the party, it had also caused a massive fight to break out between him and the surprisingly very strong Mr. McHearthan. Four punches and six kicks later, Alex was drinking his twenty-fourth glass of champaign in an attempt to dull the throbbing on his face. He became so lost in the alcohol that he didn't notice the servant coming to stand beside him until he spoke.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

The sharp voice that contained a slightly detectable British accent nearly caused Alex to drop his drink and scream. He whirled to the left on shaky feet and came face to face with none other than the darkly mysterious Henry Sturges.

"I can ashk you the shame question," the boy slurred and staggered against the wall.

"Good God, we should've sent Colonel Shaw instead," Henry muttered under his breath and rolled his eyes. The next sentence, however, was louder and angrier. "Where's Miss Armstrong?"

"You undoubtedly shaw the distraction," the last few syllables were dragged out, as if they were a length of rope keeping a mountain climber suspended in the air. "She went to gets informationnnssss."

It took all the strength the vampire had to not grab the foolish young soldier by the arms and smash him against the wall. But the look in his eyes scared Alex so much that he backed into the window by himself.

"Have you no sense of intelligence?" Henry hissed, barely managing to keep his voice at a whisper. "How could you let her go off on her own?"

"She sheemed perrrrrrfectly capable."

"The only thing she's 'perfectly capable' of is getting herself into more danger than anyone I've ever known! So I suggest that if you want to keep your head, you'll help me find her."

It would be difficult for anyone in Alex's perilous situation to refuse that demand. With an un-silenced hiccup, he poured his remaining champaign into the nearest potted plant and showed Henry to the door he'd last seen Miss Armstrong standing by.

_'For your sake, she'd better be alright.'_

It went unsaid, but the young boy could hear it in the cold dark room as the tension of the night started to settle around them and the door shut with a bang.

* * *

By the time I finally succeeded in completely opening my eyes, it seemed as if a thousand years had gone by. Groaning, I managed to heave myself into a sitting position despite the ever evident pounding in my head. The room spun for a while before finally settling down and allowing me to take a look around. Antique swords and intricately carved African masks decorated the walls that enclosed the small room. I started to head toward them so I could use one as my escape weapon, but a sharp voice rang out and effectively stopped me.

_"¡No puedes salir!"_

I jumped a mile in the air and spun around to see a burly man occupying a desk that I obviously hadn't noticed before. His face was twisted into a sneer behind a scruffy handlebar mustache and cold, beady brown eyes watched my every move. His eyebrows looked like someone had glued two fuzzy caterpillars on his forehead and the skin beneath them was like leather. A large burn was the most prominent feature, for it stretched from one side of his head to the other. As I stood there, completely frozen, he stood, revealing a scary height of at least six feet.

"No. Puedes. Salir." He repeated and I backed against the wall.

"Okay okay!" I exclaimed and held my hands up. "No voy a salir."

Now because I don't have many Spanish skills beyond that of two years of middle school classes and half a year of a Freshman class, I had absolutely no idea what he said after that. Thankfully though, he sat back down and I was able to relax a little.

That is until Adam calmly opened the door and fear flew into my chest like a shot down B-52.

"Well, Miss Armstrong, it's nice to see that you are awake. I hope Ricardo didn't hurt you too badly," he said as he walked toward me.

"Well, if you don't count a concussion as bad," I said, mentally cursing myself for already being against the stupid wall. "Then I'm fine."

He pulled a chair away from the desk and sat down, chest leaning against the back of the mahogany woodwork.

"I'll get straight to the point," he said with a wink. "It seems that you have uncovered some information that is crucial to our existence... I need to know what it is."

What does he think I am, dumb or something?

"Go screw yourself buddy," I said with a chuckle. "Ain't no way in _Hell_ that I'm gonna tell you anything."

Despite the paralyzing terror flowing through my veins, I _still_ had it in me to be sarcastic and rude. This night just keeps getting better and better.

Before I even had a chance to think about what I'd told him, his fist came barreling toward my face and collided with my cheek. My head slammed into the wooden wall and I cried out, pain sharp and prominent. I could feel that the skin was split because salty, metallic blood was running down to my chin. While I watched fearfully, Adam ran two fingers over the wound and I barely resisted the urge to throw up.

This is even worse than having to watch the Twilight movies!

"I don't know what it is about Henry Sturges that causes him to have such horrible luck with women," he said and backed away a little, leaving me a moment to ponder that sentence with confusion. Seriously, what the hell brought that up?

"Technically, I'm not a woman yet cuz I'm not eighteen," I stammered but immediately shut up when he punched the wall next to my shoulder.

Psychopath!

"I'm sure that he's told you about his wife," Adam continued, eyes taking on a crazily calm look. "Poor Edeva, didn't stand a chance against me."

I couldn't help the expression of pure disbelief that was written all over my face. Now that I think about it, I should've put two and two together (died of an illness my ass) and known that she was killed by vampires. But despite my love of inductive and deductive reasoning, I'm ashamed to admit that I was as oblivious to it as a zombie is to a non head shot. I guess I finally figured out why the World's Biggest Jerk has his title.

And you better believe that I was absolutely frigging _pissed_.

"You son of a bitch bastard!" I exclaimed and threw a well aimed punch at his jaw. "How dare you!"

Don't judge, it was extremely hard to think of a better insult at the moment.

He caught my fist easily and threw it back to my side.

"He shouldn't have thought your fate would turn out any different."

Even though I was fuming, I found myself wondering why he kept comparing me to Henry's wife. Unless he thought that... eew!

My thoughts were shattered as Adam grabbed my throat and tilted my head back, eyes and teeth morphing to show the terrifying monster features.

"I promise that it'll only hurt for a moment," he said and my heart pounded uncontrollably in my chest.

"Go to hell," I said and as my last action, promptly spat in his face.

He shrieked angrily and slammed my head against the wall, splintering some of the rotten wood. I saw his teeth within centimeters of my neck and shut my eyes involuntarily, saying silent good-byes to my family and friends, specifically the new ones I'd made in my month's stay in Hotel 1800s.

End of the line.

* * *

**And another cliffhanger (I know that you all must hate me by now lol). Tune in next week to see what happens. Sorry this is short, but I'm going to cover quite a bit of material in the next few chapters.**

**Again, I deeply apologize for not updating on Sunday. Won't happen again!**

**-Nopride**


	22. Don't Fear the Reaper

**Welcome back guys! I'm so glad that many of you liked the last chapter, even though it was short and there was a pretty big cliffhanger. **

**Disclaimer: *In Patrick Star voice* Something about root beer right?**

**A Fan: Haha here you go!**

**Alexis: Aww thank you for the long review! I'm also super glad that the movie's out! To tell you the truth, I'd kinda forgotten what they all looked like lol. Anyways, hope you like this update! **

**Bloody-kick-ass: Aw I'm sorry that you had a bad day :( On the bright side, this chapter is much, much longer and I hope you enjoy it!**

**Chibironi13: You have no idea how good your review made me feel :) I got all teared up when I read it. Whether or not you decide to post another one, I'm glad that this story seemed worth it to you. **

**Crazyblonde13: Haha here you go my friend!**

**CupKatyCakes: Aw thank you! Hope you like this!**

**Daughter of the Master: Yeah I do like Sherlock Holmes, especially when he's portrayed by Robert Downey Jr. As for your prediction, I cannot say...**

**Ginebra: Thank you :) Yes, I was quite excited to write Henry in action as well haha.**

**Guest: I'm so happy that you like this! Yay the movie's finally out! Took it long enough sheesh lol :)**

**In Pieces: Nothing like a little Twilight bashing lol (no offense to fans of the series, it's just not my thing).**

**RTVampireKilljoy: Haha I just read the book last week so I can kinda mirror them now :) Thank you for the review!**

**Supernatural Fan: Haha it is the best zombie show on TV. I think I liked the Supernatural episode "Bitten" the most of all the ones shown so far. Anyways, thanks for your review!**

**The One Who Hates Cliffhangers: Haha sorry about the cliffhanger :) Here's the next update! (For some reason, it's not letting your username show up).**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_I saw his teeth within centimeters of my neck and shut my eyes involuntarily, saying silent good-byes to my family and friends, specifically the new ones I'd made in my month's stay in Hotel 1800s._

_End of the line._

* * *

Now

I swear to whatever is out there in the universe that I felt Adam's teeth touch my neck before the door banged against the wall and he was thrown across the room. He crashed into the desk, breaking it to pieces before the startled Ricardo could move it out of the way. I saw jagged shards of wood enter both of their arms and chests and hoped rather stupidly that it would kill them. Then I remembered that silver is the only thing that can destroy blood sucking monsters (well, besides decapitation and burning) and my brief dream was shattered.

With a strangled gasp, I tore my gaze away from the destructive sight to see Henry standing defensively in front of me, posture clearly conveying 'you are so dead' to the enraged ancient vampire. Never before have I seen the World's Biggest Jerk's eyes so dark and angry and a very large part of my mind was scared to death. As I watched, he took a few steps toward Adam and Ricardo, who were struggling to their feet, a look of sheer rage on their faces.

"I should've known that you would turn up sooner or later," the head vampire said as he pulled a large splinter from his torso.

Same here buddy. Same here.

Before I could even think of anything to say, a gunshot went off and Ricardo dropped to his knees, hands cradling his left leg. I looked over at the door to see Alex holding a pistol in his steady (well, steady for a drunk guy), determined grasp.

My hero!

"Miss Armstrong run!" He shouted and fired off another shot that hit the Spanish speaking vampire in the shoulder.

I didn't need to be told twice and took off for the exit. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Adam lunge at me, only to be tackled to the floor by Henry. I stopped dead and whirled around, unable to leave when both of my friends could get killed.

"Get out of here!" Henry shouted from where he was pinned in a nearly unbreakable hold.

A month ago, I wouldn't have hesitated to leave him in the dust while thinking 'better you than me.' But now, as I watched the horrific scene play out before me, only one thought remained consistent in my head.

_Time to nut up or shut up._

I ran over to the wall and pulled one of the antique swords down with newfound adrenaline. Despite my recent kick ass attitude, I decided that trying to kill Adam would be freaking suicide. So instead, I chose to attack the vampire that was already wounded and losing the first fight.

Just as I was about to stand beside Alex, Ricardo sent him sailing through the air and into the ruined desk, causing a thick plume of dust to rise to the ceiling.  
Well, he had been losing the fight twenty seconds ago.

My fake husband got to his knees and looked frantically for his gun, only to find that it had disappeared beneath the wreckage. He would've been too late anyway; Ricardo had already noticed me standing there with my weapon. He grinned and advanced a few steps in my direction.

"_Tú morirás_," he said with a creepy smile and Alex just gaped at him.

"What did he say?" He asked as he continued to move piece after piece of wood in his search for the pistol.

"Shut up!" I yelled and got into a fighting stance, waving my sword in the air at the same time. "En Garde!"

"That's just what the situation calls for, Miss Armstrong, a third language!" He responded and ducked as Adam threw a battered Henry into the wall.

As much as I wanted to help my unlikely friend, Ricardo was quickly closing the distance between the two of us and if I turned away for one second, I would be dead. He swung his black blood covered fist at my head and I barely managed to duck before it could crash into me. I lunged with the sword just as I had a while ago at Henry's house, only this time around, I missed completely. Not hitting my target caused me to become off-balanced and I staggered into the burly vampire's waiting grasp. He drove his knee into my stomach and I doubled over with the wind knocked out of me. I didn't even have any time to try and get my breath back before he shoved me backward. I hit the wall hard next to a fireplace and heard a sickening crack that caused pain to flare up around my ribcage.

"Son... of a... bitch!" I exclaimed between wheezes for oxygen.

Multiple decorative items showered over me, some hitting my already throbbing head. One of these things was a shiny antique incense holder that latched on to the scratchy material of my dress. I took no other notice of it and only focused on the threat at hand.

As Ricardo moved toward me, I saw Alex finally locate the gun and aim it at the Spanish vampire. When the trigger was pulled, however, he disappeared and I was left with a bullet speeding toward me. It smashed into the mantle about two inches from my chest and I had enough air to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Alex you idiot!" I hissed and choked back a scream as Ricardo materialized across the room. "Hit him, not me!"

Alex pulled the hammer thing back on the gun again and attempted to fire, only to discover that it was out of freaking _ammunition_.

Hell!

When I'd been thrown, my sword had clattered to where Henry and Adam were now fighting once again, so it was absolutely useless. Frantically, I tore up the room with my eyes in search of another weapon while Ricardo made his way over to me. Just as he was within range, I noticed one of those metal pointy thingies in the fireplace and seized it with a cry. I knew that it wouldn't kill him, but it could at least give me some time to get to my sword (and not die for that matter).

I shoved the piece of metal toward the vampire's head and immediately heard a sizzling sound that let me know I hadn't missed. He screamed and clutched at his right eye where the skin was blistering and smoke was rising. The smell of burning flesh filled the room and made me feel sick to my stomach. I saw Alex turn away and cover his nose with his hand, gags escaping his tightly sealed lips.

I think it's clear which one of us is the dominant person in our developing relationship.  
While Ricardo was distracted, I ran around him toward the only weapon I really know how to use. I could see Henry staggering to his feet, multiple cuts on his face bleeding like crazy. Other than that and a possibly dislocated shoulder, he seemed to be doing fine. What should've tipped me off though was the subconscious knowledge that Adam was nowhere in sight.

"Where is he?" Alex demanded, glancing at the still injured Spanish vampire.

"I don't know," Henry said, eyes darting around constantly in an attempt to locate our frightening adversary.

I stopped dead in my process of retrieving the sword because of a sudden cold sensation that ran down my spine. Goosebumps coated my arms and I couldn't help the shiver that shook my body.

Well that's never a good sign.

I reached out to grab the blade so I could have something to defend myself with, but someone grabbed my shoulders and locked my head against their chest.

Crap.

"This fight is over," Adam said as blood from where Henry had gotten a couple lucky hits ran down his chin.

I struggled as much as I could against his iron hold, but it was no use; the guy's stronger than the freaking Terminator.

Mega crap.

Alex pointed the newly loaded gun at him, but that only caused the grip on my throat to tighten. If by some miracle we all actually survive this, I'm so going to kick my fake husband's stupid ass.

"Let her go," he said, proving once more that he's the master of the cheesiest lines in the book.

I could see that none of this was going to end well. Neither Henry or Alex could move without me ending up dead as door nail and _that_ was definitely not the ideal solution to the problem.

What was though, was something a lot simpler than I'd imagined.

Just as my panic was about to dissolve into hysteria, something metallic hit the floor with a clang that went unnoticed by everyone but me. Without moving my body, I shifted my eyes and saw the shiny incense holder still attached to the material on my dress. Light from the fireplace reflected off it and with a start, I realized that it very well could be silver.

Aka: It could be our ticket out of this hell hole.

Carefully, so as not to alert Adam what I was planning, I grabbed the incense holder and breathed a deep sigh. He didn't even bother looking at me, for he was too busy taunting Henry and Alex.

"How would the two of you like her to join the ranks of the undead?" He asked and I saw my two friends take a threatening step toward him.

Okay, that's far enough.

My life was literally dependent on a decoration that I thought was totally ugly. I took another deep breath to steel myself, then stabbed the silver into the head vampire's leg. Sadly, I was unable to reach any lethal part of his body, but if it saves me, then frankly my dear, I don't give a damn.

Well I can tell you one thing for sure: it was definitely made of silver.

Adam screamed and let go of me to frantically claw at his leg where disgusting black blood was pouring out. I seized the opportunity and ran over to Henry and Alex, who were absolutely astounded.

"How did you..," Alex began but a glare from the World's Biggest Jerk shut him up.

"We need to go _now_," he said and grabbed my arm to tow me out of the room.

We weren't even in the hall for ten seconds before there was a feral scream and a disgusting sound like stepping on a broken water balloon. When I turned around, a horrific sight met my wide, deathly frightened eyes.

The only person who was as scared as I happened to be was Alex. Blood leaked out of his mouth and ran down his chin on to the ground. He looked at Henry and I briefly before dropping his head to examine his chest. The entire scene made me sick to my stomach and when I followed his gaze, it took all I had not to throw up (that and the fact that I haven't eaten anything since yesterday).

The large piece of splintered wood that protruded from his chest was completely covered in blood. He stumbled forward a few steps, but then collapsed to his knees, allowing us to see who was behind him.

The bastard just did not want to die.

To tell you the truth, I wasn't all that surprised to see Ricardo as I was terrified. For a moment, all of us simply stared at each other. Then Henry kicked one of the many side tables at the Spanish vampire, which sent him sailing back into the wall. I couldn't do anything but stare at my dying friend who I'd indirectly gotten into this situation. He managed to give me a slight smile before falling face down to the floor. I saw Henry shut his eyes for a split second and then he grabbed my arm again.

"Miss Armstrong," he said and I slowly looked up at him. "We have to leave. There's nothing anyone can do for him."

I felt tears run down my face as I nodded and followed him to one of the empty rooms. He wasted no time in smashing open the only window and helping me out of it. Cold night air greeted us and I shivered uncontrollably for a few seconds, not entirely sure what it was from. We ran along the roof until I, being the idiot that I am, nearly fell off the edge.

If Henry hadn't grabbed my hair (which freaking hurt, but hey it saved my life), I definitely would've broken a leg... or worse.

"Well great!" I hissed angrily as I rested my hands on my knees to catch my breath. "Now what do we do, Genius?"

He glared at me, brown eyes showing off their infamous darkness. I merely turned away and looked down at the grassy fields that were so far below. I could feel my insane fear of heights starting to act up as the familiar lightheadedness began. I covered my face with my hands so I wouldn't have to look at it (ergo, preventing me from throwing up).

The next thing I knew, I was no longer standing on the roof and everything was at normal level.

"Dude what the hell?" I demanded despite being relieved. "What did you do?"

"I jumped."

For some odd reason, that one revelation was the last straw. I fell to my knees and promptly heaved my guts up, missing his shoes by a mere few inches. I didn't need to look at him to know that he had a disgusted look on his face. To be honest, I didn't care; kinda hard to when food from the last three days is being redisplayed for you.

To make matters worse, my stupid hair started to fall out of the pins that Mrs. Lincoln worked so hard to fix properly. It tanged in front of my face and definitely would've gotten puked on if Henry hadn't held it back. Although the atmosphere was still grave, that one gesture was enough to make me feel a little bit better.

Just a little.

I don't know how long I stayed hunched over on the ground, but Henry eventually pulled me to my feet. I started shaking uncontrollably, teeth rattling to the point where I thought I'd chipped some, and he took off his jacket and wrapped it around my shoulders. The part of me that was still rational was extremely flattered and shocked by the considerate gesture. Huh. Maybe I should stop and think for a few minutes before the next time I insult him.

"T-thank you," I stammered but avoided his gaze.

He didn't say anything, only continued to lead me toward the tree line where the rest of our company was waiting.

When I looked over my shoulder for the last time, I could barely make out the silhouette of a man standing by the broken window...

With a silver incense holder still imbedded in his leg.

* * *

***Plays funeral music***

**Would anyone care to deliver the eulogy?**

**Well, that chapter certainly turned out a lot differently than I'd originally planned. I would just like to thank you all for reviewing this so much! It really helps me to keep writing. Couldn't have done it without you guys!**

**Tune in next week for the next update!**

**-Nopride**


	23. Know Your Enemy

**Hello all! As a heads up, this chapter is kinda short, but it's leading up to something big :) Hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own anything.**

**Alexis: Haha Henry was a smartass in the film lol :) And I'm sorry that my subconscious killed Alex. Just felt like it had to happen. Anyways, hope you like this!**

**Alisialy: I'm pretty sure that vampires only can't kill each other. I could be wrong, but oh well. I feel kinda bad for killing Alex, but again, I felt that it had to happen. Here's the next update!**

**Crazyblonde13: Skating is fun lol. Here you go!**

**Daughter of the Master: Yeah Olivia is kick ass when she's in 'nut up or shut up' mode lol. Thanks for your review!**

**Extreme Optimist: EXTREME! I was wondering if you were going to leave a review my friend :) Welcome to the fic! Oh and to answer your question, I did minimal research lol.**

**Ginebra: Yeah the fight was quite hellish. Hope you like this update! **

**In Pieces: I'm glad that you like my portrayal of Adam. I really tried to get him right :)**

**Julie Winchester: Yeah he does care quite a bit :)**

**RTVampireKilljoy: Haha salut to Alex! Thank you for your review and here's the next update. **

**Ryle Culler: Aww thanks! Hope you like this chapter!**

**Supernatural Fan: Hope you're feeling better! And yes I did see the Supernatural episode :) I practically woke up my entire house by screaming CASSSSSSS! Lol.**

**X-Baozi: Haha Henry was awesome last chapter. Here ya go! (It's still not letting me post your username).**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_When I looked over my shoulder for the last time, I could barely make out the silhouette of a man standing by the broken window..._

_With a silver incense holder still imbedded in his leg. _

* * *

_A Flash Forward..._

_'Let's nuke the bridge we've torched two thousand times before. _

_This time we'll blast it all to Hell. _

_I've had this burning in my guts now for so long._

_My belly's aching now to say...'_

_..._

_"So... How've you been?"_

_"Oh blow it out your ass, jerkwad."_

* * *

When Henry and I finally reached the designated rendezvous point, the first thing we registered was the fact that Lincoln and Speed were absolutely nowhere in sight.

I was still shaking from the events of the night and this was just icing on the freaking cake. Henry immediately let go of me and I almost fell, not having realized how heavily I was relying on his support. I leaned against one of the tent poles while he walked quickly over to one of the Union officers to find out information. The scenarios that were running through my head ranged anywhere from Adam getting to the camp before us and kidnapping the President and his shopkeeper friend, to them just going home. Sadly the latter did not seem all that plausible, which added a whole new level of crap to the night.

Damn.

"What happened? Where are they?" I demanded as Henry made his way through the sea of soldiers over to me.

"Apparently the train stocked with silver is on its way further South," he said and grabbed my arm to tow me toward the tent. "Lincoln, Will, and Speed went to guard it."

"Well what's the big frigging deal? It's a train and it's going to its destination."

I was seriously mega confuzzled.

"A vast majority of Confederate soldiers are vampires. Regular ammunition is anything but effective and the only way the North can even dream about defeating them is if this silver gets to the front lines."

He spoke without looking at me and when we entered the tent, he proceeded to grab various weapons, from knives to those stupid pistols that I still can't use. I could only watch as he pulled my Katana from one of the many barrels that I hadn't even known were brought with us. He handed it to me and because of my shaking muscles, I nearly dropped it on my foot. Thank God that Henry thought ahead and still had an iron grip on it even though I'd grabbed the handle.

After making sure I wouldn't stab myself, he quickly looked around for the case, swearing profusely because it seemed to elude him. While he was busy cussing like a vampirate (get it? A sailor that's a vampire? Never mind), I studied the blade of my sword, noting how the silver glinted in the dim candlelight.

Wait a second.

_Silver... Train..._

My eyes widened to the size of dinner plates as a burning thought surged to the front of my brain. Why it had taken so long, I have no idea, but the important thing was that it had finally manifested. I shut my eyes tightly and thought hard in an attempt to recall the lot of it. If I can study for three tests that are on Monday and still watch the Walking Dead on Sunday night, I'm pretty sure that my memory can remember something that happened only a matter of hours ago.

_'Silver on train stop June 16, 1863 stop will be guarded stop._

_-Washington DC_

_Informant: Mr. Joshua Speed.'_

Oh. _Hells_. No.

That rotten. Son of a bitch.

"Miss Armstrong, can I trust that you'll..," Henry began, but I cut him off.

"It's him!" I exclaimed and dropped the Katana to grab my friend's shoulders. "Henry, it's him! That's how Adam knew who I was!"

"It's who?" He asked, promptly removing my arms and pinning them at my sides.

Normally, I would cringe away from his sharp tone and dark eyes, but I was way too pissed to even consider those things.

"Speed! Before I got caught, I found some telegrams in a trunk. One of them was from Washington DC, I'm assuming the White House, and it had his name on it as the informant! Don't you get it? He's the freaking rat!"

Shock blasted through his features and I could tell that even though it's his freaking motto to not trust anyone, he was not expecting Speed to play a part in this betrayal at all.

To tell you the truth, neither was I.

"That bloody bastard!" He hissed and I threw my hands up in a '_oh now you get it_' gesture.

"Yeah, which is why we gotta high tail it over to that train and warn Lincoln and Will! Adam and his goons are gonna be all over it like dogs on a mailman!"

I seriously expected him to say something along the lines of 'we? You're staying here.' But to my extreme surprise, he quickly agreed and gave me the case to my sword that he'd found while I had been waltzing down Memory Lane.

"Follow me," he said and walked out of the tent.

I didn't need to be told twice and when I finally caught up with him (the guy moves like he's an Olympic runner), Mrs. Lincoln chose the perfect moment to notice us. She lifted her skirts so that she wouldn't trip and carefully made her way over. I could see bewilderment in her eyes as she took in my blade and the many guns and knives Henry held in his hands and belt.

"What's the meaning of this?" She demanded and it was up to me to answer because the World's Biggest Jerk took the opportunity to go and find some horses.

Asshole.

"We're gonna go help Lincoln and the rest of them," I said, trying to be as nonchalant as I could, which considering my acting skills, was not very much. There's a reason I switched out of my high school drama class.

"You can't!" She nearly screamed and I flinched back, holding my arms up in case she decided to act crazy.

"Uh, we can and we are."

"No no no, you don't understand. Abe told me specifically not to let you go after them."

"Yes, I figured he might," Henry said as he walked over, leading two horses behind him.

_We meet again_, I thought bitterly to one of the four legged animals as Mrs. Lincoln haughtily raised her head.

"What good do you think this will do, Henry?" She asked and he tried to silence her with a glare. "You can't kill these monsters. The only thing I see happening is this poor girl getting killed!"

"I can handle myself," I interrupted and barely batted an eye when the President's wife looked sharply up at me. "You can give me the death glare all you want; the statement's still true."

"Miss Armstrong, you are a child and I am not going to listen to..."

"Are we gonna go or what?" I asked Henry, completely ignoring the short, angry woman.

He smirked and turned to Mrs. Lincoln.

"Ma'm," he said with fake politeness and I barely restrained a giggle.

It would've been nice if I'd been able to get on my horse without any help after that, but as fate would have it, I nearly fell flat on my face. Henry had to give me a leg up and even then, I was almost facing backward in the saddle until I gained my balance. Of course, getting on the horse caused a sharp pain to shoot through my cracked or broken ribs, but I determinedly refused to show any pain. The last thing I need is for someone to discover that I'm hurt and then make me stay with the psychopathic women who will most likely try to kill me with hair pins again.

After saying one last sarcastically funny remark to the fuming Mrs. Lincoln, Henry jumped on to his horse with a grace that I wanted to push him off a cliff for. He spurred the rotten animal and it took off with a neigh.

I waved my hand at whoever was watching in the camp and followed the trail of dust that signaled the direction my friend had taken.

...And I could just barely make out the dark crow that flew in front of the brightly glowing moon.

* * *

**I know that this is kinda short, but it's leading up to the train scene, which will happen in the next chapter. I think you all know what that means... Anyways, I hope you liked the update!**

**Will this next chapter spell the end for the punky Olivia Armstrong? Tune in on Sunday and find out!**

**-Nopride**


	24. Crazy Train

**Hello guys! First of all, I am so sorry for the late update, but something really important came up that I had to take care of. **

**That being said, as of now, this story only has two or three more chapters left. However, I do have a sequel planned, but I'll only write it if you guys want to see it. I have a poll on my profile where you can vote yes or no. If for some reason you can't get to it or it won't let you vote, just state your answer in your review. **

**Anyways, hope you guys like this update!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the book/movie or any song lyrics I used.**

**Alexis: Why yes, the three tests and Walking Dead thing is a personal experience lol. Hope you like this! **

**Alisialy: I've never been shy of killing off main characters *evil laughter*. Whoops! Did I say that? Lol jk jk.**

**Crazyblonde13: Thank you for your awesome review! I very sorry to hear that you are sick. Get better soon! **

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**Supernatural Fan: Thanks haha :) Hey I've got three questions for you. First, who do you think is on the phone in the Walking Dead? Second, do you think Dean has every right to be mad at Sam right now? And third, ARE YOU EXCITED FOR CASTIEL? **

**And on with the fic!**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_I waved my hand at whoever was watching in the camp and followed the trail of dust that signaled the direction my friend had taken._

_...And I could just barely make out the dark crow that flew in front of the brightly glowing moon._

* * *

Now_  
_

Okay, for those of you that honestly thought Henry and I could immediately go rescue our friends, all I can say is that you haven't been paying attention to this tale _at all_. If you had been, you would've known that luck is never on my side and I honestly think the bastard hates me. If you don't believe my statement, allow me to elaborate.

About two minutes after we defiantly left the camp, I realized that I was still wearing the fancy party dress and there's absolutely no frigging way I would be able to fight in it. So that's why I had to ride back to the tent, change, and deal with a very angry Mrs. Lincoln. To give you the watered down version, there was yelling, name calling, and it ultimately ended with me flipping her off. But I'll leave the full recount of that story to be told another time (if I even live long enough).

Which brings us back to the present... Well, past in my case.

The horses were moving at a snail's pace that I found super annoying. However, Henry assured me that the slow speed was absolutely necessary because if we moved any faster, the vampires flocking the woods were bound to hear us. The closer we got to the train, the slower we had to travel.

"Dude if we don't hurry up, it's gonna pass us," I complained and uncomfortably fidgeted in the saddle.

The night settled around the two of us like a cloak and I shivered, suddenly thankful for the thick Union jacket I'd smartly grabbed when I was changing back at the tent. A couple of stormy clouds covered the moon, leaving shadows and darkness in their wake. Dead silence filled the air until Henry spoke, causing me to nearly jump out of my skin.

"Not likely. Lincoln, Speed, and Will had to ride back toward Washington in order to reach it. Although they're already there, we've got time before it gets to us."

He must've noticed my skeptical gaze because he immediately tacked on,

"We'll be fine."

I decided to just leave the conversation at that due to the fact that my eyes were flicking around constantly and apprehension was building up deep in my chest. It was practically pitch black outside and I couldn't see two feet in front of me. The only light came from a small lantern Henry had attached to his saddle and even that only illuminated the world enough so that the horses didn't crash into trees. Unwanted memories of the computer game Slender filled my brain and I seriously suspected the creepy guy with no face to appear out of freaking nowhere and eat me or whatever he does.

When I looked away from where my hands were holding the reins in a death grip, I swear that I saw a spindly figure that quickly disappeared. Directly after this, my horse stepped on a couple of twigs which made a cracking sound that I instantly deduced to belong to my creepy video game guy.

"What was that?!" I demanded as my head whipped from side to side. "Oh my God, it's the Slender Man!"

"What?" Henry asked, eyes conveying that he thought I lost my marbles. "Miss Armstrong, there's nothing here."

"Oh that's what you think!" I exclaimed, knowing somewhere in my mind that it wasn't the game I was afraid of. "But as soon as you look away bam! He'll appear behind a tree or in an abandoned building and absorb your soul or something!"

It sounds ludicrous, but when you're riding a horse through a forest that's crawling with vampires, things suddenly become a lot more plausible.

"I find that highly ridiculous."

"Yeah and I used to find blood sucking monsters ridiculous, but look how wrong I was there!"

We would've argued more, but the high pitched screech of a locomotive whistle blasted through the air, causing me to cringe and throw my hands over my ears. Once I realized that my ears were not going to bleed, I listened more carefully and noticed a pattern in the noise.

"Is that the SOS signal?" I asked, confused as to why Lincoln and Will would choose to use it when they know that no human (besides me of course) will be able to help.

"I believe so," Henry said and if I didn't know any better, I would say that there was a slight amount of fear in his voice. But since that sounds totally crazy, I decided to ignore it.

"Do you think they know we're on our way?"

"Perhaps. We need to get moving."

"But you said..."

"Forget what I said! Follow me."

It was definitely not a good time for me to launch into a 'you were wrong' festival, for Henry spurred his horse and rushed off into the forest. It took me a few seconds to figure out how to get mine to move faster and when I did, I nearly fell on to the ground. Thankfully, I'd grabbed the mane just in the nick of time and managed to refrain from murdering my ribs any more than I had already.

Well, there's at least one good thing about the night.

"Do you have any idea what we're going to do once we get there?" I shouted over the suddenly rushing wind. "I mean, what's the game plan?"

"I don't understand that term," he responded without looking at me. "But when we get there, I'll need you to guard the cars containing the silver. They're all interconnected so you'll have easy access."

"Okay... What're you gonna do?"

"I'm going to _talk_ to our dear friend Speed."

Uh oh.

"Doesn't it make more sense for you to guard the silver?" I asked, trying desperately to keep the tremor out of my voice. "You've got the better fighting skills; I think you could kill them a lot easier than me."

"Miss Armstrong... I _can't_ kill them."

"Can't or won't?"

"_Can't_... Only the living are able to kill the dead."

Okay, I haven't taken a cryptology class man. I have no idea what you freakin' mean by that.

"So you're saying..." I pressed.

Don't judge. I haven't been in school for about a month and my critical thinking skills are a tad rusty.

"I'm saying that I cannot physically destroy vampires because I am one as well."

I felt my jaw drop open as I gaped at him, absolutely stunned. He glanced over at me but then rolled his eyes and focused on the forest ahead of us, obviously trying to avoid my gaze.

Well tough buddy.

"And you're just telling me this _now_?" I demanded and he sighed with irritation.

"I didn't think any good would come with you knowing," he responded, voice tightly clipped. "It seems that I was right."

As you can imagine, things were kind of awkward after that little revelation. I was pretty damn pissed that he'd sat on this for the entire month and a half I've been here. Not only that, but I also realized that he won't be able to protect me from Adam or any other vampire who decides to climb aboard the train for a joy ride.

Balls.

The rest of the journey was spent nearly in absolute silence... Well, except for my panic attacks when I thought I saw the Slender Man again. Despite these occurrences, I think Henry got the message that I was mad at him; giving someone the cold shoulder kind of conveys that meaning. But two can apparently play at that game because he didn't say more than a sentence to me, which is pushing it. I don't know if 'be ready' even counts as a full sentence, but that was beside the point. All I can say for sure is that we were both fuming.

However, it turned out that we didn't have time to mad at each other, for we reached the train in a matter of minutes after the argument. It was moving at a breakneck speed which I found to be extremely intimidating. Not five seconds later, it dawned on me that we were going to have to jump in order to get on and let me tell you, I was not looking forward to that at all.

The two horses pulled right up next to the locomotive, working harder than ever to keep up with it. Henry slowly stood upright and easily kept his balance on the saddle, arms outstretched to help him. Then he effortlessly leaped across the six foot or so gap and grabbed ahold of one of the metal handlebars on the heavy door. He pulled against it and it slowly slid open, allowing me to have an easier landing target.

That doesn't mean I was going to jump without putting up some sort of fight.

"Are you sure there's no other way I can get on?" I asked as I nervously looked at the fast moving ground. "Any way will do."

"Miss Armstrong, you have to jump," Henry said and stood clear of the doorway. "You'll be fine."

"I can't even pass the flexibility test at school! How do you expect me to stretch my legs far enough to meet this metal monster?"

"There's a ravine up ahead. If you don't move right now, it'll be too late."

It was a pretty sucky situation in which I couldn't do anything but comply. I bit my lip and stood up in the saddle, knees shaking uncontrollably. I removed my feet from the stirrups so they wouldn't get caught in them and ultimately cause my not so quick death. I briefly shut my eyes and took a deep breath before pushing off from the horse and sailing through the air.

I felt my feet touch the edge of the box car and there was a terrifying moment where I thought that I was going to tumble backwards into the forrest. But then Henry reached out and grabbed my arms and I was pulled to relative safety. Well, I don't really count a train filled with vampires as safe, but at least I'm not a pancake on the ground right now.

"Remind me to never do that again," I said and he smiled slightly.

It's a start.

Before either one of us could discuss what to do next, the door to the next car started to move. I quickly unsheathed my Katana that I'd smartly clipped on to the belt loops of my jeans and held it ready. Henry pulled out a pistol from his bandolier (not that he would be able to use it. I guess it was more for show) and steadily aimed it at what I assumed would be head level on an ordinary 1800s man.

The door slowly moved open and I swear to God that I nearly screamed bloody murder when I saw the two guns pointed at us. It took me a moment to realize that it was only Lincoln and not an entire army of undead blood sucking assholes. All three of us lowered our weapons and Henry shut the open hatch we'd jumped through.

Talk about awkward.

"What are you doing here?" The President demanded, worried fury in his eyes. "I specifically had Mary tell you to remain at the camp."

"Yeah that went over well," I muttered and tried to cover it with a cough when he turned his authoritative gaze on me.

"Henry, have you gone insane? How could you bring her into this?!"

"Never mind that," the World's Biggest Jerk answered, which only added to Lincoln's anger.

"She's a child for God's sake!" He exclaimed and I wondered for a moment why he hadn't been this upset about me volunteering for the party. "Do you honestly believe that she can..."

"Abraham, I have to tell you something impor..."

"She could get killed! We're not going to be able to watch..."

"Speed's gone double agent on you!" I interrupted, knowing that if never would've been said if they'd just continued to argue. "He told Adam and all them about the silver! They're on their way here _right freaking now_!"

I seriously don't know what I thought his reaction would be, but I can say with Pinocchio honesty that it wasn't close to anything my brain could've predicted. Instead of gaining a look of pure shock and leaning against one of the many crates whilst saying 'I can't believe it,' the President began to _laugh_. At first I thought that he was simply in denial (realizing that one of your closest friends has stabbed you in the back is hard for guys. Us girls should be desensitized to it by now). But then he told us,

"You don't know what you're talking about."

I then realized that he actually _believed_ Speed was still on his side and it wasn't just a pipe dream to him.

Crap.

"She's right," Henry said in his typical dark manner. If he hadn't been agreeing with me, I would've rolled my eyes. "Speed's not the man we thought him to be."

"What proof do you have of this... treachery?" Lincoln asked almost mockingly.

Jeez. And I thought Henry was the only one with severe Jerkwad Syndrome.

Just as I was about to explain the telegram to him, a loud bang directed our attention to the side of the boxcar where a barely visible dent had just appeared. We all looked at each other for a moment before Lincoln and I held our weapons up again and Henry walked over to the door. Some unspoken signal passed between the three of us and he pulled the heavy barrier to the side. I barely had time to blink before a fast moving creature moved in and stood on top of the crates.

Hol-y crap.

Henry quickly shut the door so more couldn't flock inside, leaving the one vampire completely isolated. He looked around and, noticing how bad the situation was for him, went for the easiest target.

Aka: Moi.

Bravery has been a quality that I have lacked most of my life. Paranoia? Abundant. Courage? Not so much. But over the last month, things that I never would've deemed possible have been happening and in a way, they may have actually helped me.

So that's why I didn't simply drop my sword and scream when the vampire started running in my direction.

After taking a deep breath, I stepped forward and put all my weight on my right foot, which was leading. When he was about a meter away, I lunged with the Katana, hitting him nearly dead center in the chest. All of the murderous rage flew out of his eyes and was replaced by astonishment. I held the blade there for a second longer before pulling it out and slicing his head off. The body fell to the floor with a barely audible bump and blood began to leak out of the cracks in the wood.

Wow.

Henry and Lincoln first stared at me, then at the dead monster, then back to me again. After a moment of silence, the President cleared his throat and asked,

"Miss Armstrong... How on Earth were you able to do that without the proper training?"

"I already knew how to use the Katana," I said, blushing for some odd reason. "But uh... the rest I learned from Supernatural and the Walking Dead."

Michonne and Dean Winchester all the way baby.

I could tell that the two of them definitely had more to say, but it soon became clear that it was really a bad time. More sounds from outside let us know that many vampires were flocking the train. It suddenly shook and veered to the right, causing us all to momentarily lose our balance. I grabbed on to Henry's arm so I wouldn't tumble to the ground (he was the only one of us that wasn't affected by the shift in motion).

"Follow me!" Lincoln exclaimed once he was stable again. "We have to keep them away from the locomotive!"

He disappeared outside through a ladder and was soon followed by Henry. I would've gone immediately, but then I realized that it was still incredibly dark out there.

"Actually, I think I'm going to stay here where I can see," I called up to them, apprehension clear in my voice.

I didn't even have the time to hear them respond, for another loud bang sounded against the door and I decided that I did not want to be in there alone.

"Okay! Wait for me!"

As soon as I was up the ladder, I was met with a terrifying sight. I could see Lincoln and who I assumed to be Will fighting for their lives. For a moment, the only thing I did was watch (how many girls get to say that they saw the sixteenth president kick a bunch of vampires' asses). But then I noticed one of the undead monsters coming up behind Will (who had his back to me) and there's no way he'd be able to turn around in time.

All reason forgotten, I ran forward and, pulling my Katana from its sheath, swung it in an arc toward his head. The creature ducked and I merely hit empty air. Not a second after I'd missed, I stabbed down and this time heard the stomach turning sound of blade cutting flesh. I put my combat booted foot against his shoulder and pulled my weapon out as he crumbled in on himself. Not wanting to stare at his bloody body, I sent him off the side of the train with a hard kick. Will chose this moment to look behind him and I'm sure that I either surprised or scared the crap out of him.

And of course, with me being the totally lame person I am, the only thing I could think of to say was,

"Hola, que pasa?"

Yup, I'm officially a member of the Socially Awkward Club.

"Is that supposed to be an introduction?" He asked as his eyes scanned the forest for more vampires.

"Sort of," I said with a shrug. "I uh... I'm just kind of odd."

"So I've heard."

Any other person would've meant it as an insult, but this guy said it with a warm smile and I instantly liked him.

"You're a brave girl. Not many would be able to handle this."

Yeah I've already deduced the opposite of that, buddy.

Just as I was about to respond, a loud snap directed our attention to where we'd last seen Lincoln. To my dismay, Adam stood above him with a broken axe in his hands and an evil grin on his face. I could see that the President was scared out of his mind, but he was determinedly fighting it. And to give Will credit, he attempted to save his friend by chucking a well aimed throwing knife at the oldest vampire in the history of time. But that only ended with my new friend nearly falling off the train. If it hadn't been for Lincoln, he would probably be road kill.

So that left me. To be honest, I probably could've planned my attack better, but at the moment, I was more focused on saving my friends than I was on being smart. That being said, it shouldn't come as a surprise to you that I ended up over the side of the train as well. Thankfully, I managed to grab on to a service ladder before I could become a pancake and my Katana latched on to my studded belt.

Oh _balls_.

"It's over Lincoln!" I heard Adam shout triumphantly. "I have the silver! I have the country!"

From what I could see, the President was too busy holding on to his friend to answer.

"They will not remember you as one of the living, but as one of the dead!"

My scream was lost over the sound of the wind, but I soon saw that it was in vain. While we'd all been fighting our asses off, Henry had been somewhere else (most likely kicking the crap out of Speed). But he picked the perfect time to show up and he tore Adam off of Lincoln and the two of them crashed somewhere or another. While I watched this with surprise written all over my expression, the President helped Will up and to safety.

"Where's the girl?" Will asked to which I quickly responded,

"Over here! Get me back up on this thing!"

The two of them ran over and hauled me on to the top of the train again. I pulled my blade from where it was digging into my waist and held it ready.

"Where'd they go?" I asked and then we heard Henry's voice, laughing this time, from the car below.

"There is no silver on this train!"

Well, I felt like an idiot.

Will, Lincoln, and I kicked the rest of the debris away that was covering the hatch into the box car. Henry was totally knocked out and Speed was in Adam's iron hold. Said vampire had an incredibly angry expression on his face and was staring murderously at us.

"Where is the silver?" He demanded to which Lincoln replied,

"You'll never find it."

Well that just set him off. To our stunned dismay, he lowered his head and bit Speed's neck, causing the younger man to scream. The President made a move to attack, but then Adam was gone.

"Son of a bitch!" I exclaimed as I turned around in circles, looking for our opponent.

What I saw nearly caused me to faint.

The bridge that was supposed to carry this train safely over the ravine was on freaking _fire_.

"Mr. Lincoln!" I yelled and he whirled around.

"What?!"

"The bridge is on fire! Someone call the fire depart... I mean... The God damn bridge is on fire!"

Fear crashed into his eyes as he turned and saw what I was rambling about.

"We have to get off this thing!" Will screamed with a terrified look in his eyes.

"You're not going anywhere," a voice angrily said. "Where. Is. The. Silver?"

It sounded like Adam was right behind Lincoln and while I watched, I saw the fear in the President's eyes morph into blazing determination. He pulled a silver pocket watch out of his coat and wrapped it around his fist. He then turned around and punched the ancient vampire in the chest.

"Here," he said and pulled back.

Adam looked down at the blood seeping through his torso with a gaze of pure shock. Then his eyes rolled back into his head and he fell off the side of the train and over the burning bridge.

"Wow," I said but then lurched to the side as the wooden beams beneath us shook.

"We have to go," Lincoln said and grabbed my arm to pull me toward the front of the train.

"Wait!" I yelled and dug my feet into the steel in an attempt to resist motion. "What about Henry?"

"He'll be fine!" Will exclaimed as he ran ahead. "Come on!"

If I'd been able to, I would've put up more of a fight. But since it's really hard to free your arm from the grip of a man who's freaking six foot four, I didn't. The three of us ran along the locomotive, jumping over the gaps of the connection links to the next cars. I soon realized that the screaming metal death trap was moving slower as we got closer to the end of the bridge. When I looked over my shoulder, I was shocked to see that the entire row of cars was gone and only the engine was left. To make matters worse, the burning wood was collapsing more quickly beneath us and if we didn't get off the train in a few seconds, we would be dead.

"How the Hell are we going to get off this thing?" I shouted over the roaring blaze and Lincoln looked down at me.

"We'll have to jump."

Great. More jumping. Awesome.

The two men looked like they could easily leap the ten feet or so to the tracks on solid ground. Me on the other hand... Not so much. I gingerly peeked over the edge of the train (or what was left of it) and was met with the sight of a nearly two hundred foot ravine.

Yeah no. Not jumping any time soon.

To my dismay, I realized that it wouldn't make much of a difference if we tried to get off or not; the locomotive was starting to move backward.

"Abe," Will said, a question remaining unasked in the air.

Lincoln heard it despite this.

"No," he said and looked dejectedly at the fire.

I shut my eyes and felt unwanted tears escape. So this is it? No last requests or anything? The only thing that remained true to the books was the fact that memories flashed right before my eyes. However, they weren't from my childhood and they weren't of my family or modern friends. No, my thoughts at the moment consisted of everything I'd been through during my entire stay in Hotel 1800s, from playing my guitar for Abraham freaking Lincoln, to meeting Speed. But what surprised me the most was the simple knowledge that one person stood out from the rest no matter how vivid the memory.

Henry.

And suddenly the dark didn't seem so bad anymore.

"The world is on my side," I sang softly to myself. "I have no reason to run. So will someone come and carry me home tonight?"

Lincoln and Will looked over at me like I'd lost my mind, but I didn't care. There's no reason I should die while feeling upset.

"The angels never arrived, but I can hear the choir. So will someone come and carry me home tonight?"

I turned my gaze on to the two men that I've come to consider in the short time that I've known them as friends. The only thing I could offer was a small smile, which they reluctantly returned. Then I looked up at the sky, threw my arms out, and screamed at the top of my lungs,

"_Tonight, we are young. So I set the world on FIRE! We could burn BRIGHTER than the suuunnnnn_!"

Before the train could fall into the ravine and send all of us to our deaths, something latched on to it and pulled it toward the tracks on the other side. Will, Lincoln, and I all looked at each other before seizing the opportunity and jumping to safety. Again, I landed wrong and pinwheel my arms for balance until the President reached out and steadied me. The locomotive tumbled into the void a few seconds later and we were left breathing heavily and rapidly.

"You're welcome," a tired, strained voice said and we looked over to where someone was exhaustedly sitting against a tree.

"Thank you Henry," Lincoln said and offered his friend a hand to help him up. "I guess not all vampires are bad."

Henry smiled and stood, turning to me.

"Are you alright?" He asked and coughed slightly due to smoke inhalation.

"Yuppers," I said, a sudden giddy feeling rushing throughout my body. "And Holy crap I'm freaking alive!"

I threw a fist in the air and jumped up and down, causing the three men to laugh. After I was done spazzing, I ran over to the World's Biggest Jerk and threw my arms around his neck, extremely happy that he was okay too.

I seriously expected him to pry me off like he always does whenever I try to hug him, but apparently, this time was different. Instead of trying to pull away, he slowly wrapped his arms around my shoulders and didn't let go.

And then the night finally chose to settle.

* * *

**Again, I am so sorry for the late update, but I hope that this chapter made up for it! Also, don't forget to vote on my profile for whether or not I should put up a sequel to this! **

**Until next time,**

**-Nopride**


	25. You There S? It's Me, Olivia Armstrong

**Hello everyone and welcome back! This will be the second to last chapter and I really hope you enjoy it!**

**Disclaimer: See previous chapters**

**Alexis: Hey Ali! Haha I too have done the Three Tests Thing with the Vampire Diaries lol. Anyways, I'm glad you want a sequel and here's the next update for ya!**

**Crazyblonde13: Haha she's fourteen. I would be saying eew too lol :)**

**ChibiRoni13: Slenderman was cool haha. I'm glad that you want there to be a sequel!**

**District4Tributevolunteer: Yeah I read and enjoyed the Hunger Games :) Thanks for your review!**

**Doyle0915: Haha I'm glad that you've enjoyed it :) And I'm also glad that you like Olivia haha. **

**Edowen: You don't have to wait any longer my friend! Here you go!**

**Guest: I'm glad that you want a sequel hahaha. **

**Harrylee94: Thank you :) and yes, the movie is epic haha**

**In Pieces: Slender scared the Hell out of me when I first played it lol. I went into that abandoned tile place and he was in a room and the music plus the fact that I was playing at night made it twice as scary lol!**

**LokixXxLuvsxXxEvee****z: Aww thank you! Haha I'm glad that you liked it!**

**Julie Winchester: Yeah I thought the ending was sweet as well :)**

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**RTVampireKilljoy: Haha people really seem to like Slenderman hahaha.  
**

**Supernatural Fan: Aww thank you! So my friend, I have two questions for you. First, what did you think of Merle in this last episode. Second, did you enjoy Castiel's return?  
**

**Tolazytosignin: Haha remember that she's only fourteen :)**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_I threw a fist in the air and jumped up and down, causing the three men to laugh. After I was done spazzing, I ran over to the World's Biggest Jerk and threw my arms around his neck, extremely happy that he was okay too.  
_

_I seriously expected him to pry me off like he always does whenever I try to hug him, but apparently, this time was different. Instead of trying to pull away, he slowly wrapped his arms around my shoulders and didn't let go.  
_

_And then the night finally chose to settle._

* * *

Now

"We make quite a team, you and I," Henry said as he absently stared out the window of the Oval Office. "There's no telling what more good we could do."

Lincoln laughed in agreement and closed his journal, the lot of it completely covered in writing. I looked up from where I was lounging on the sofa in the corner of the room, wondering if he was talking to me.

"Abe... Let me make you immortal."

Okay, definitely not addressing yours truly.

"No," the President and I said at the same time and I shrank back a little from the looks they gave me.

"I mean, I don't think that's how this whole thing's supposed to go," I defended and slowly stood up. "What're they going to teach kids in school, 'Abraham Lincoln lived forever and might show up at your house one day if you're lucky?' Yeah, that will go over well."

The President chuckled and Henry, despite his best efforts, cracked a smile.

"My answer would be no even without your... compelling argument, Miss Armstrong. One does not need to be a monster in order to live forever in the minds of many."

You've got no idea, buddy, I thought and flopped back down on the couch. "Glad I could help."

Before either one of us could say anything more, Mrs. Lincoln's voice sounded from outside,

"Abe, when are we going to order the tickets for the theater?"

"I'll be there soon and then we can go," Lincoln called back and began to search the room for something. "I just need to find my hat."

Ice replaced the blood in my veins and I swear that my heart skipped a beat. I looked over at the calendar on the wall next to the desk and could just barely make out the date.

_June 14, 1863_

Now because I had a freaking awesome History teacher in eighth grade (there's a reason I had over a hundred percent in the class), I knew that the sequence of numbers I really cared about were not going to happen for another two years. A couple months ago, this knowledge wouldn't have meant anything more to me other than that it was a point in time that could never be erased or rewritten. But now, the fact that it hasn't happened yet means that I can prevent the death of a person who I have grown to know and really care for.

Screw the Space Time Continuum.

"What play are you seeing?" I asked, deciding to play it cool for the moment.

"_Our American Cousin_," he answered as he continued to search for his ridiculously tall hat. "Mary's been dying to go for ages."

"What theater?"

"Ford's."

"And there's no other night you can go?" Almost time to drop the bomb. "I mean, I don't know when or where this S person might decide to send me home. I at least want to say good-bye."

There was a slight 'aha!' as Lincoln finally found the hat and put it on his head. Henry chuckled to himself and rolled his eyes. I found myself unable to participate in the light atmosphere and instead stuck to my gloomy mind. The President seemed to notice this and he walked over to the couch and pulled me up. He gently wrapped his arms around me and I sighed deeply.

"Everything will be fine, Miss Armstrong," he said and his sounded as if he was talking to one of his own children. "Trust me."

He pulled away, grabbed his coat, and began to head for the door. Just as he was about to disappear, I called out to stop him.

"Mr. Lincoln, wait!"

He turned around and waited to hear what I had to say. A part of me knew that this was it; depending on what I decided to tell him, history could be changed forever.

And I didn't know if I wanted that burden on my shoulders.

"...Have a nice night."

He smiled and nodded as he shut the door behind him and vanished down the hallway. A few minutes later, Henry and I could hear the wheels of a carriage pulling away from the building. After that, there was complete and utter silence.

Until I decided to open my mouth again, that is.

"Soooo," I said and fell back on to the couch for the second time. "What're we gonna do now that there's no more vampires to kill?"

"We?" Henry asked, surprise ringing in his voice.

"Well yeah, since I don't think I'm gonna be going home any time soon."

"But you just told..."

"I was BSing."

"I beg your pardon?"

"You'll find out what it means in about a century."

He took a deep breath that was filled with annoyance and sat down next to me. I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye and then stretched my shoes out across his legs, laughing when he immediately knocked them off. I couldn't tell if he was suppressing a grin or not because his face was completely static.

Now because I'm me and definitely not a polite person in any way, shape, or form, I continued to use him as a support for my feet. Since he's very polite but also very irritable, he continued to push them off every time. This went on for a few minutes before he finally snapped.

"For the love of God, will you stop?" He yelled, but I could tell that his heart wasn't really in the anger.

"Not any time soon, mi amigo," I said and happily propped them up again.

"I really used to hate it when Edeva did this."

It took me a moment to remember who he was talking about and when I did, I was gobsmacked.

"Your wife?" I asked in a small voice as I put my feet back on the floor. "The one that Adam killed?"

"How did you know about that?" He demanded, sharp gaze quickly cutting over to mine and I curled defensively into the couch.

"While he was b-..." I stopped short of saying 'beating the living crap out of me.' "Interrogating me, he mentioned her and what he did."

Dead silence.

"I'm really sorry."

"It's alright, Miss Armstrong," he said and shut his eyes, repeating the first two words softly to himself. "It's alright."

A response was ripe on my lips, but before I could say it, there was a blinding flash that lit up the room. Instinctively, I threw up a hand to shield my eyes and Henry did the same, turning his head slightly because they were more sensitive. It felt as if everything was on fire and I recognized this event all too well.

My time traveling engineer buddy is back.

When everything finally died down, I gingerly lowered my arm and looked toward Lincoln's desk in the back of the room. Sitting there as if it had been all along was a piece of paper, neatly folded and still smoking slightly. How it never burns to a crisp due to the immense amount of energy it uses eludes me.

Slowly, I stood and crossed the small distance between me and my only connection to home. I picked it up and immediately dropped it, noting that I was probably going to get another colossal blister in the next few days. Gritting my teeth, I tried again and was able to open it without burning the Hell out of my hand. Once I'd accomplished this simple task, I began to read.

_'Well, despite all odds, you did it, Sunshine. How does it feel, knowing that you took part in destroying the empire of monsters in the United States? Not only that, but your decision to not let Lincoln in on his death saved thousands of lives of people who wouldn't have even been born if he'd known._

_So this is it kiddo. I'm not going to offer you a choice between staying in Hotel 1800s or returning to the modern world. I know you might be super pissed for this, but don't judge me. It's partly because I hate that whole choice cliché and partly because I can't keep you here for much longer without time passing in the present. I don't think your folks would react well to you never showing up._

_I'll give you two minutes exactly to say your good-byes, starting after you finish reading this (trust me, I'll know)._

_-S_

_Ps: Oh and don't worry. We'll get all your stuff back to you.'_

I didn't know whether I should feel elated or sad; after all these months, I'm finally going home.

Which means I have to leave everyone who's become my friend.

Aka: Henry, Lincoln, and Will.

_Balls_.

"What does it say?" The World's Biggest Jerk (who has steadily been losing his title) said as he walked over to stand behind me.

I winced as I turned to face him and he immediately detected something in this one motion that seemed to set off alarms in his mind. His demanding stare softened and he tilted his head to the side ever so slightly.

"Miss Armstrong... What's wrong?"

I took a deep breath and reminded myself that the clock was ticking.

"There's no easy way to say this," I began and he frowned a little. "An' I don't have much time. But... I'm leaving... Now... And I'm not sure that I want to."

All dignity forgotten, I threw my arms around him and began to cry uncontrollably into his shoulder. I couldn't see his face, ergo I had no idea if he was sad, happy, angry, or what. But that didn't matter to me; the only thing that did was the depressing fact that I was down to only a minute of time.

"Listen to me," I said through the sobs that shook my body and he hesitantly wrapped his arms around my shoulders. "In about two years, something's gonna happen that'll... That'll rip you apart. But you _have_ to make it through the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Don't go insane and for God's sake, don't get your ass handed to you by some hunter with a vendetta. Do you understand me?"

Given the state I was in, I don't think it would've gone over well if he'd said 'you lost me at listen.' So instead, he replied,

"Of course."

I pulled back and looked up at him.

"Thank you," I said. "For everything."

Silence.

"You're a good man."

The last thing I remember before white light obscured my vision was the slightest smile on his face.

And then everything went black.

* * *

**Okay, so it's a little short, but it's a explanatory chapter :) The next one will be the last and longer. Tune in next Sunday for the conclusion of Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil!**

**-Nopride**


	26. Back to the Future (Epilogue)

**Hello all and welcome to the epilogue of Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil! Now before we begin, I have to make an announcement **

***clears throat and pulls out speech***

**Remember how I said that Olivia went back in time from 2012? Well, the way I had that set up, I would've ended up writing in the year 2022 for the sequel and I just don't really feel right doing that. So could we just forgive the time lapse and pretend that she went back in the year 2002? I know that I've made references to modern stuff, but it would be quite difficult to write something that hasn't been written yet (haha joke haha. ah I'm a bad comic lol) **

**Anyways, sorry about that and on with the chapter!**

**A Fan: Slender freaked the HELL out of me! Have you played the $20 version?**

**Alleygirl24: Hahaha don't worry, you'll get plenty of cliffhangers in the sequel cuz I know how much you love them! Lol and you're very welcome my friend. Feel free to PM me any time with questions, comments, or just for the heck of it :)  
**

**Casbriel: Haha now that's two meanings that I've heard for OMC. Haha idk which one I like better lol.  
**

**Crazyblonde13: All shall be revealed in this chapter :) Oh and Slender is quite awesome. Haha as you can probably tell, I'm a video game nerd lol.**

**District4Tributevolunteer****: You shall see in this update :)**

**Ginebra: Here ya go my friend!  
**

**Guest: You shall find out...  
**

**Harrylee94: Haha and a sequel you will get :)**

**Julie Winchester: Don't worry about rambling, we all do it sooner or later :) And you'll see what happens...**

**MissWisy: Aww thank you! That really means a lot to me!**

**RTVampireKilljoy: Thanks for reviewing :) Oh and I've been meaning to say this for a while now: KILLJOYS, MAKE SOME NOISE!  
**

**Supernatural Fan: I'm glad you liked this story so much :) And last episode I was all "CAS!" I woke up my dog, who'd been using my legs as a pillow and she stared at me like 'wth are you doing?" Lol. **

**And here we go...**

* * *

_Previously on Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil..._

_"You're a good man."  
_

_The last thing I remember before white light obscured my vision was the slightest smile on his face._

_And then everything went black._

* * *

Now

_February 17, 1988_

_The young man with the jet black hair silently approached the person who was putting his guitar back into its case. The concert had been wild with people drinking and smoking until they passed out. But it's rock and roll; what else is to be expected?_

_As he watched the man finish closing the music case, Henry Sturges knew what he was going to ask was futile. The date still wasn't right. Nevertheless, he felt as if he had to know._

_"Excuse me," he said, careful to keep his accent clipped and the man jumped a mile in the air._

_"Holy Hell!" He exclaimed and the revelation of how young he was only discouraged Henry further. "Didn't hear you walk up man. What d'ya want?"_

_"I noticed that you said your last name is Armstrong."_

_"Yeah it is," the guitarist ran a hand through his blonde hair and then held it out to shake. "Steven."_

_"Henry," the vampire said and couldn't help but be surprised that someone who used 'man' within every other sentence could be formal. "Henry Sturges."_

_"Well, you mentioned my last name and didn't say why... Kinda weird if you ask me."_

_Henry chuckled and Steven did as well, although it was sort of a guarded action._

_"Sorry. It's just... There wouldn't happen to be any relation to an Olivia Armstrong, would there?"_

_"Olivia?" He seemed to consider this. "...No, not that I can think of. Why, friend of yours?"_

_"Good friend. But I guess I got the wrong place."_

_"So you're new to San Fran then huh?"_

_"Just moved from DC... Haven't seen it in a long, long time."_

_"Well, you'll like it here. Plenty of places to have a good time."_

_"I'm sure there are."_

_Steven grinned and hoisted the guitar case over his shoulder and began to head toward the door that lead off the stage._

_"Well, listen, I gotta run. My wife and I are expecting a kid soon and I promised her I'd be home by eleven."_

_"Congrats," Henry said and surprisingly found that he actually meant it._

_"Yeah, gonna have a baby girl. My son can't wait to have a younger sister to push around, you know? What about you, you got any kids?"_

_"Nah... Wouldn't exactly be the best thing for me right now."_

_"Oh right, sorry. You're still in college aren't you? Well, that wasn't really my thing, so I get to experience the best of life a little early. Want my advice? Live everything to the fullest. I mean, no one's gonna be around forever."_

_Henry managed to fight off the urge to laugh at the musician's statement. If only he knew._

_"Well maybe I'll see ya around some time man. San Francisco may be a big city, but the Underground is more like a community where everyone knows each other."_

_"Yeah, maybe."_

_Steven smiled and walked out the door to his car, not noticing the rushing sound of air that signaled Henry's quick disappearance. He placed his guitar in the trunk and leaned against the '58 Plymouth Fury for brief moment._

_'Olivia,' he thought. 'Pretty name.'_

* * *

_November 21, 2012_

The encounter with Steven Armstrong ran through Henry's mind as he sat at one of the many bars in San Francisco. He'd been so sure of the incredible resemblance between him and Olivia that it came as quite a shock to find out that there was no relation whatsoever. He himself didn't even know why he was still searching. After all, she'd just been a girl, a kid at that!

But nevertheless, she was his friend.

"Yo, Louis, double shot of whiskey."

Henry chuckled and turned to look at the young woman now occupying the stool next to him. She had her hand tiredly on her forehead and didn't look up when the bartender placed her drink in front of her.

"Thanks," she said in a flat tone and leaned her head on her arm.

"Rough day?" Henry asked and she chuckled.

"Rough week," she muttered and glanced over at him, revealing startling malachite eyes. "But what can you do? That's life. You're born, you go through Hell, and you die."

He laughed and she downed the whiskey, slamming the glass on the counter a moment later.

"So what about you?" She asked and turned to completely look at him. "Your reason for getting wasted?"

"Rough couple years. Been looking for an old friend, but no luck."

"Sorry to hear that. He or she from the Bay Area?"

"Yeah, but she could be anywhere by now."

"Well you never know. People always turn up sooner or later."

"I'm betting on later then."

She smiled for the first time since she arrived and pushed her wavy dark brown hair behind her ears.

"You around this place a lot? I don't think I've ever seen you here," she said, waving her hand for another shot.

"Not really. The world's just been driving me insane these last few weeks."

"I hear ya. And between you and me man, people are stupid."

"Got that right," Henry said and pushed his glass away, absently staring at the many bottles lined up in front of him.

"You know, you have the darkest gaze I've ever seen. Life can't be that cruel to you..."

"Henry," he said. "Henry Sturges."

"Right. Well Henry, is it really that bad? I mean, there's people who have it a lot worse than you do."

"Tell me then, who does?"

"Well... Dead guys for one. You're alive, aren't you?"

"I wish."

The look on her face had him backtracking.

"It's just... I don't exactly have a lot going on in my life right now."

"Join the club my friend."

Henry grinned and stopped the bartender from giving the bill to the girl. He fished two twenties out of his pocket and looked over at her.

"On me," he said. "But only if I get a name."

"Alright wise guy," she said, picking up on his game. "It's Olivia. Olivia Armstrong."

Wordlessly, he dropped the money on the counter and just stared at her, struggling to understand what was going on.

"Wait," he said. "Do you...?"

"Remember everything?" She finished and laughed, pulling the sleeves of her bomber jacket down to cover her wrists. "Of course, ya idiot. How could I forget the great Henry Sturges, whose ass I saved on that screaming metal death trap of a train?"

"Why did you act like you didn't know me then?" Now that the initial shock was over, the anger set in.

"Don't get so worked up. Consider it payback for me having to wait ten freaking years before seeing you again. Why didn't you show up sooner, ya jerkwad?"

"Right, a twenty-five year old man asking about a fourteen year old who's not related to him at all. That doesn't sound weird."

"Touché."

"And San Francisco is a huge place. Do you know how many Armstrong's there are in the phonebook?"

Olivia laughed and mock punched his arm, ignoring his falsely irritated stare. She stood and pulled him up with her.

"Come on, let's get out of this place. The guy in the greasy shirt over there is freaking me out."

Henry smiled and held out his arm, a knowing look on his face. As they walked out the door, only one thought remained consistent in his mind.

_What the HELL am I getting myself into?_

* * *

**Right, I know this is kinda short, but it IS the epilogue. And due to the stunning amount of votes I got on that poll, there will be a sequel! *sets off fireworks***

**I would just like to take the time to say thanks to everyone who has reviewed, followed, and/or added this to their favorites list. It really means a lot to me and when I first started, I had no idea that it would end up being twenty six chapters. The fact that I reached well over 100 reviews is just absolutely incredible and the encouragement that you all have given me has kept this story going. You guys are the best!**

**Oh and please do forgive the time-lapse. When I first started this story, I had an original ending, but that changed after a while.**

**Anyways, look for Bury the Light, the sequel to Dark Doesn't Always Mean Evil, which should be up next Sunday. Adios for now, mis amigos!**

**-Nopride**


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